LIBRARY 

OF  THE 

UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA. 

GIFT  OF 


Class 


o^*2S~  s? 


ESPIRITU  SANTO  LAKE,  IN  THE  SANTA  FE  RANGE. 


NEW   MEXICO 

MINES    AND    MINERALS 


WORLD'S  FAIR  EDITION, 
1904. 


Being  an  Epitome  of  the  Early  Mining  History  and  Resources 
of  New  Mexican  Mines,  in  the  Various  Districts,  Down 
to  the  Present  Time.  Geology  of  the  Ore  Deposits, 
Complete  Census  of  Minerals,  Mineral  and  Ir- 
rigation Waters,  Table  of  Altitudes  and 
Other  General   Information. 


ILLUSTRATED. 


"Surely  there  is  a  vein  for  the  silver,  and  a  place  for  the  gold 
where  thev  fine  it."— Job  2K:1. 


AR 

THE 

UNIVERSITY 


BY 

FAYETTE  ALEXANDER  JONES,  C.  E.,  E.  M.,  LL.D., 
'/ 

Member  of  the  Territorial  Board  of  the  Louisiana  Purchase 
Exposition  Managers  and  Director  of  the  Mineral  Exhibit. 


SANTA  FE,  N.  M.: 

THK  NF.W  MEXICAN  PRINTING  CO.VU>A>.Y, 
1  W4. 


Copyright 

by 

FAYETTE  A.  JONES, 
1904. 


ALL  RIGHTS  RESERVED. 


1 32587 


TO 

THE  MEMORY  OF  THE  19th  CENTURY  PROSPECTORS 

OF 

NEW  MEXICO, 

This  Volume  is  Most  Sincerely  Dedicated 

by  the 
Territorial  Board 

of  the 
Louisiana  Purchase  Exposition  Managers. 


The  passing  of  the  "old  time"  prospector  forever  removes  from 

the  American  people  one  of  the  most  unique  characters 

in  the  history  of  the  Republic. 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS, 


Frontispiece. 

1.  "Tooth  of  Time." 

2.  "Enchanted"  Mesa, 

3.  Vertical  Section  of  the  Earth's  Crust  in  New  Mexico. 

4.  Ruins  of  the  Gran  Quivira. 

5      Vertical  Section  of  the  Rio  Grande  Basin. 

6.  Ortiz  Mine. 

7.  Los  Cerrillos  Smelter. 

8.  Santa  Rita  Mining  Camp. 

9.  Old  Adobe  Spanish  Prison 

10.  Adobe  Furnace  at  Hanover. 

11.  Shamrock  Smelter. 

12.  David  Egelston. 

13.  Organ  Mountains. 

14.  Stephenson-Bennett  Mill. 

15.  Blowing  Gold  from  the  Sand. 

16.  Geological  Section  Across  Apache  Canyon. 

17.  Log  Cabin  Mine. 

18.  Geological  Section  Across  Sierra  Oscura. 

19.  Socorro  Mountain. 

20.  Mount  Magdalena. 

21.  "Old  Hutch." 

22.  Tomb  of  J.  C.  Cooriey. 

23.  Mill  of  the  Mogollon  Gold  and  Copper  Company. 

24.  Geological  Section  Across  Baldy  Mountain. 

25.  Mathew  Lynch. 

26.  Hydraulic  Mining,  Lynch  Placers. 

27.  Dredge  of  the  Oro  Dredging  Company. 

28.  Cross-section  of  the  Glen- Woody  Lode. 

29.  A  Vein  on  the  Danberry  Mine. 

30.  Scene  on  Rio  Bonito. 

31.  Geological  Section  at  White  Oaks. 

32.  Dredge  of  the  American  Placer  Company. 

33.  Dry  Washer  of  the  Electric  Mining  and  Milling  Company. 

34.  Cross-section  of  the  Monzonite  Dike,  Jones  District. 

35.  Massive  Iron  Croppings. 

36.  Fierro  Iron  Mine 

37.  Opening  of  Pinavititos  Coal  Mine. 

38.  Collecting  &alt  at  Big  Salt  Lake,  Estancia  Plain. 

39.  Crater  Salt  Lake. 

40.  Graphical  Diagram  of  Cement  Industry. 

41.  Geological  Section  of  the  Gypsum  Deposits  at  Ancho. 

42.  Ancho  Cement  Plant. 

43.  Ancient  Stone  Hammers. 

44.  "Turquoise  John." 

45.  Gem  Turquoise  Mines. 

46.  Ojo  Caliente. 

47.  Faywood  Hot  Spring. 

48.  Coyote  (Chavez)  Spring. 

49.  Cecill's  Artesian  Well. 

50.  Map  Illustrating  Pecos  Valley  Water  Supply. 

APPENDIX. 
Governor  Otero  and  Board  of  Managers. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  PAGE 

I.  Geology.  Our  Fragmentary  Knowledge  of,  Plateau  Region:  "Tooth 
of  Time,"  Enchanted  Mesa.  Recent  Lava  Flows  and  Their  Effects. 
Cretaceous  and  Eruptive  Areas.  Vertical  Section  of  the  Earth's 

Crust  in  New  Mexico  and  Mineral  Bearing  Horizons 1 

II.  Early  Spanish  Conquests  for  Gold.  Expeditions  of  Coronado.  and 
Other  Adventurers  and  Their  Disappointments.  Destruction  of  the 
Gran  Quivira;  Its  Buried  Treasure.  Early  Mining  History  and  Rec- 
ords at  Santa  Fe 8 

III.  Placers.     The  Various  Fields  of,  Their  Extent,  Richness  of  Gravels, 
Accumulations  of  Gold  in  the  Bed  of  the  Rio  Grande.    Early  and 
Presen  t  Placer  Operations 15 

IV.  New  Placers  (Silver  Buttes)  District.    The  Old  and  New  Placers. 
Their  Discovery  and  Primitive  Methods  of    Working.    Ortiz  Mine. 
Golden.  San  Pedro  and  Dolores  Camps.    San  Pedro  Copper  Mine. 
Geology  of  Ore  Deposits  of  the  District 21 

V.     Cerrillos  (Galisteo)  District.     Prehistoric  Turquoise  Mining  at  Mount 

Chalchihuitl  (Turquoise).    Mina  del  Tierra.    Geology  of  the  District.       29 
VI     Central  District.     Its  Early   History   and   Mining.     Santa  Rita  and 
Hanover  Copper  Mines,    Iron  Deposits  at  Fierro  and  Hanover.    Ke- 
cent  Gold  Strike  at  Gold  Gulch.    Lone  Mountain  District.    Mimbres 

District.    Georgetown  Silver  Mines.     Carpenter  District 34 

VII.    Pinos  Altos  District.    Its  Discovery.  Fights  with  the  Apache  Indians. 

Hardships  in  Pioneer  Mining.    Mines  and  Mills.     Silver  Cell  Mine 47 

VIII.    Silver  or  Chloride  Flat  (Silver  City),    White  Signal   (Cow  Creek), 
Bullard's  Peak,  Clark's  Peak  and  Burro  Mountains  Districts.     Silver, 

Turquoise  and  Copper.    Production     Discovery 53 

IX.    Virginia  (Shakespeare),  Pyramid,  Gold  Hill,  Malone,  Eureka  (Ha 
chita),  Fremont  and  Apache  No.  2  Districts.     Copy  of  an  Old  Dodger 
of  the  Early  Days.     A  Glimpse  of  Exciting  Times  in  Mining.     Advent 
of  the  Santa  Fe  Railway  Gives  an  Impetus  to  General  Mining  Activ- 
ity       58 

X.  Kimball  (Stein's  Pass),  San  Simon,  California,  Steeple  Rock  (Car- 
lisle), Anderson  and  Telegraph  Mining  Districts.  Old  Butterh'eld 

Stage  Route.    Death  of  Captain  Stein 66 

XI.  Organ,  Dona  Ana  Mountains  and  Hembrillo  Mining  Districts.  Gold 
Camp.  Black  Mountain.  Stephenson-Bennett  Mine  and  Its  Early 
History.  Torpedo  and  Little  Buck  Mines.  Geology  of  the  Ore  De- 
posits    73 

XII.  Las  Animas(Hillsboro),  Pittsburg  (Caballo  Mountains)  and  Iron  Reef 
Districts.  Discovery  of  Gold  at  Hillsboro  and  Apache  Canyon 
Blowing  Gold  from  the  Sand.  Geological  Section  Across  Apache 
Canyon 81 

XIII.  Lake   Valley.  Macho  and  Bromide  No.  1    (Tierra  Blanca)  Districts. 
Tne  Celebrated  Lake  Valley  Mine;  Its  Discovery,  History  and  Pro- 
duction.   The  Bridal  Chamber.    Occurrence  of  the  Ore.    The  Log 
Cabin  Mine 89 

XIV.  Black    Range,    Xos.    1    and  2,   Palomas   (Hermosa),    Apache   No.    1, 
Cuchillo  Negro  (Limestone)  and  Sullivan's  Hole  Districts,  Embracing 
the    Silver  Camps  of    Kingston,   Hermosa,   Chloride,   Edwards   and 
Grafton.    Indian   Massacres.     Hardships   Suffered   by   the  Pioneers. 
Silver  Monument  Mine 95 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTEH  PACiK 

XV.  Jones,  Hansonburg,  Estey  City,  San  Andreas,  Little  Burro  and  Mock- 
ing Bird  Districts  and  Camps.  Geological  Notes  on  the  Iron  and  Cop- 
per Deposits.  Historical  Data 102 

XVI.  Socorro  Mountain,  Lemitar,  San  Lorenzo,  Hanson  (Ladrone  Moun- 
tain), Canyoncito,  Chupadeio,  Rjsedale  and  Red  Hill  Districts.  Early 

Mining  History.    Geology  and  Character  of  the  Ores 1C9 

XVII.  Magdalena,  Pueblo,  Iron  Mountain,.  Cat  Mountain.  Silver  Mountain 
(Water  Canyon)  and  Abbey  Districts.  Mount  Magda'.ena  and  Its  Su- 
perstitions. Discovery  of  the  Districts.  Kelly  and  Graphic  Mines. 

Council  Rock,    Observations  on  the  Ore  Deposits 1 19 

XVIII.  Cooney,  Wilcox  and  Tellurium  Districts.  Discovery  of  the  Cooney 
Mine.  Death  of  J.  C.  Cooney  and  William  Wilcox  by  Victorio's  Band 
of  Indians.  Camps  of  Mogollon  and  Graham.  Production,  Character 

and  Geology  of  the  Region 129 

XIX.  Moreno,  West  Moreno  (Hematite),  Uraca  and  Bonito  and  Cimarron- 
cito  Districts.  History  of  Discovery  of  Gold  at  Elizabethtown  and 
Baldy  Mountain.  Big  (Lynch)  Ditch.  Aztec  Mine.  Placer  Fie'ds 

and  the  Big  Dredge 138 

XX.  Red  River,  Black  Copper.  Keystone,  Midnight,  La  Belle,  Rio  Hondo, 
Cieneguilla,  Copper  Mountain  and  Picuris  Districts.  Camps  of  Red 
River,  Twining,  Amizette,  South  Fork,  Glen- Woody  and  La  Belle. 

Rich  Gold  Strike  at  Red  River 153 

XXI.  Bromide,  Headstone  (Hope well),  Copper  Canyon  and  Ojo  Caliente 
Districts.  Bromide  Mine.  Platinum  in  Tampa  Mine.  Eureka  Gulch 

Placers 162 

XXII.  White  Mountain,  Nogal,  Bonito  (Parsons),  Eagle  Creek  and  Ruidoso, 
White  Oaks,  Jicarilla  and  Red  Cloud  (Gallina  Mountains)  Districts. 
History,  Geology  and  Production 168 

XXIII.  Cook's  Peak,  Florida,  Tres  Hermanas,  Canzillo  Springs,  Victorio  and 
Stonewall  Districts.    Early  History  of  Cook's  Peak.    Graphic,   Des 
demona  and  Othello  Mines.  Jose  Camp  and  Pneumatic  Concentrator 
Ores  and  Production 180 

XXIV.  Cochiti  Mining  District.    Bland,  Peralta  Canyon,    Woodbury    Mill,  Al- 
bemarle   Mine    and   Mill.     Nacimiento   Mining   District.    Jura-Trias 
Copper  Company.    San  Miguel  District  and  Mines 185 

XXV.  Mining  Districts  of  the  Sandia  and  Manzano  Mountains.  Placitas, 
Sundia,  Tijeras  Canyon,  Coyote  and  Star  (Hell  Canyon)  and  Man- 

zano  Districts 190 

XXVI.    Silver  Hill  (Jarilla)  District.    Turquoise  Discoveries.    Assassination 

of  De  Mueles,    Iron,  Copper  and  Placer  Mining 193 

XXVII.  Las  Vegas  Districts  of  Selitre,  San  Pablo,  San  Miguel,  Tecolote, 
Mineral  Hill.  Also  Rociada,  Coyote  (Mora  County)  and  Miscella- 
neous Districts.  Zuni  Mountains,  Copperton  and  the  Guadalupe 

Mountains 197 

XXVIII.    Iron.    Geology  of  Deposits.    Localities  and  Analyses 201 

XXIX.  Coal  Chemistry  of  the  Hydrocarbons.  First  Mention  of  New  Mex- 
ican Coal.  Government  Mine.  Area  of  Fields.  Statistics  and 

Analyses 210 

XXX.    Salt;    Its  Geology.     Estancia  Lakes  and  Crater  Salt  Lake 223 

XXXI.  Cement,  Plaster  and  Lime.  Portland  Cement.  Other  Types.  Ce- 
ment Plaster.  Slag  Cement.  Geology  of  the  Gypsum  Deposits  of 
New  Mexico.  Technology  of  Gypsum  at  Ancho.  Analyses.  Plain 

of  the  White  Sands 231 

XXXII.  Clay,  Brick  and  Stone.  Clay  Horizons.  Crushing  and  Absorption. 
Tables  of  New  Mexican  Bricks.  Analyses  of  Clays.  Classification 
of  Building  Stones.  Formula  of  Strength.  Table  of  Crushing 
Strength.  Analysis  of  Ricolite.  Ornamental  and  Lithographic 
Stone.  Localities  of  Building  Materials 247 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  PAt.K 

XXXIII.  Mica.    Classification  as  to  Grades.    Occurrence  and  Localities.    Sul- 
phur.     Localities.     Otero's    Sulphur  Works.    Guano;    Its  Mode  of 
Occurrence.     Pumice  Stone  and  Tripolite,  Ocher,  Alum,  the  Gila 
River  Deposits 259 

XXXIV.  Gems  and  Precious  Stones.    Turquoise.      Antiquity  of  New  Mexican 
Mines.     Geology  and  Mode  of  Occurrence.     Quality.    Localities....     267 

XXXV.    Petroleum,  Asphaltum  and  Graphite 278 

XXXVI.  Radium  and  the  Ores  of  Radio- Activity.  Physical  Properties  of 
Radium.  Reflections  on  the  Ultimate  State  of  Matter.  Has  the 
Alchemist's  Dream  Been  Realized?  Notes  on  Some  of  the  Rarer 

Metals 283 

XXXVII.  Mineral  Waters.  Census  of  the  Mineral  Waters  of  New  Mexico. 
Notes  on  the  Early  History  of  Some  of  the  Celebrated  Springs.  Me- 
dicinal properties  and  Analyses 289 

XXXVIII.  Well  (Artesian)  and  River  Waters.  An  Exhaustive  Compilation  of 
These  Classes  of  Waters  with  Analyses.  Map  Illustrating  the  Pecos 

Valley  Water  Supply 313 

XXXIX.  Table  of  Altitudes.  Embracing  the  Elevations  of  All  Important 
Land  Marks  and  Points  in  New  Mexico,  with  the  Authority  of  the 

Observation 327 

XL.     Census  of  New  Mexican  Minerals,  Complete  so  Far  as  Now  Known. 
Statistical  Tables  on  the  Production  of  Mines  and  Labor  Employed 

for  the  Year  1902 8  i2 

APPENDIX.  Synopsis  of  the  Mining  Laws  of  the  Territory  of  New  Mexico  Gov- 
erning the  Location  and  Re-location  of  Mining  Claims.  Biographical 
Sketches  of  Governor  Otero  and  Board  of  Managers 347 


PREFACE. 


Through  the  medium  of  the  Territorial  Board  of  the 
Louisiana  Purchase  Exposition  Managers  of  New  Mexico, 
the  publication  of  this  volume  on  New  Mexico  Mines  and 
Minerals  was  made  possible. 

The  Board  of  Managers  fully  recognized,  in  the  beginning, 
the  importance  of  presenting  in  a  proper  and  concise  manner 
such  matters  of  interest,  at  the  Great  Exposition  in  the  City 
of  St.  Louis,  concerning  New  Mexico,  as  would  redound  to  the 
general  welfare  of  the  commonwealth  and  at  the  same  time 
tend  to  reflect  credit  on  itself  in  the  performance  of  its 
manifold  duties,  has  in  accordance  writh  such  views,  sanctioned 
the  publication  of  this  brief  historical  Memoir  descriptive  of 
the  Mines  and  Minerals  of  New  Mexico.  It  is  sincerely  hoped 
by  the  Commission  that  the  matter  herein  contained  will  be 
cordially  received  by  a  generous  public  and  may  prove  both 
interesting  and  valuable  to  all  from  a  scientific,  as  well  as  from 
a  historical  standpoint.  Technical  terms  and  phrases  have 
been  avoided  as  much  as  was  consistent  in  elucidating  intelli- 
gently the  various  topics  discussed. 

Should  any  criticism  be  offered  as  to  the  manner,  character 
and  style  of  presenting  the  subjects  contained  in  "New 
Mexico  Mines  and  Minerals,'' the  author  desires  the  other 
members  of  the  board  exonerated  from  such  rebuke,  and  will 
himself  shoulder  the  full  responsibility;  since  the  whole 
volume  was  entirely  wrritten  by  him  and  was  left  in  his 
hands,  absolutely. 

Moreover,  the  author  washes  to  say  that  he  gratuitously 
prepared  the  whole  of  the  manuscript  and  bore  the  entire 
burden  and  expense  of  collation,  correspondence  and  stenog- 
raphy. 

Every  effort  was  exerted  to  secure  and  include  only  that 
wThich  is  authentic,  and  whenever  possible,  verified  by  living 
representatives  of  the  "early  days,*'  who  were  on  the  ground 
in  person.  It  should  be  observed  then,  that  the  source  of 


'1  PREFACE. 

much  information  thus  obtained,  was  not  through  mere  hear- 
say or  by  second-hand  evidence.  Such  evidence  as  was  gotten 
can  be  gathered  at  this  time  with  more  accuracy  than  would 
be  possible  so  to  do  a  decade  hence. 

The  fact  should  not  be  overlooked,  that  the  surviving 
prospectors  of  the  "early  days"  are  few  in  number,  when 
compared  to  the  vast  army  that  have  followed  the  inexorable 
command  of  the  Silent  Captain  to  explore  the  untrodden 
regions  of  the  Great  Unknown. 

The  passing  of  the  "old  time"  prospector,  forever  removes 
from  the  American  people  one  of  the  most  unique  characters 
in  the  history  of  the  Republic. 

The  author  is  indebted  to  numerous  persons  throughout  the 
Territory  for  valuable  aid  and  data  furnished  in  preparing 
this  volume;  among  those  deserving  special  mention  for  their 
kindness  are : 

James  Lynch,  J.  M.  Webster,  Prof.  J.  S.  Macgregor,  J.  P. 
Rinker,  John  Y.  Hewitt,  Capt.  M.  Cooney,  Charles  R.  Smith, 

F.  B.  Schermerhorn,  Major  W.  H.  H.  Llewellyn,  Col.  G.  W. 
Prichard,  Col.  A.  W.  Harris,  H.  Lesdos,  Hon.  L.  B.  Prince,  B. 
D.  Wilson,  J.  Van  Houten,  Hon.  J.  M.  Abbott,  Thos.  A.  Lister, 

G.  L.  Brooks,  J.  C.  Plemmons,  Dr.  Charles  R.  Keyes,  Hon. 
Seaman  Field,  David  Stitzel,  Dr.  M.  M.  Crocker,  J.  S.  Hutcha- 
son,   M.   W.  Porterfield,   E.   L.   Smart,  D.  S.  Miller,  J.  G. 
Schumann,  W.  J.  Weatherby,  David  Egelston,  EC?.  H.  Smith, 
H.  W.  Russell,  Jack  Richardson,  W.  M.  Woody,  Hon.  Antonio 
Joseph,  A.   R.   Gibson,   Arthur  Seligman  and  Hon.  W.  S. 
Hopewell.     The  greater  number  of  coal  analyses  were  taken 
from, the  1902-3  report  of  the  Hon.  Jo  E.  Sheridan,  United 
States  coal  mine  inspector. 

To  Prof.  E.  M.  Skeats,  of  El  Paso,  many  thanks  are  due  for 
valuable  service  rendered  in  furnishing  most  of  the  analyses 
of  river  and  well  waters;  especially,  the  Pecos  Valley  water 
analyses.  And  to  M.  E.  Hickey,  attorney  at  law,  for  a  synop- 
sis of  the  Mining  Laws  of  New  Mexico,  the  author  is  greatly 
indebted. 

It  is  to  be  hoped  that  when  the  body  corporate  of  the 
Territorial  Board  of  the  Louisiana  Purchase  Exposition 
Managers  has  been  absolved  by  reason  of  the  act  which  limits 
its  existence,  that  it  has  left,  at  least,  a  foot  print  in  the  sands 


PREFACE. 

of"the    desert  of    time,    faithfully    embodied   in   this  brief 

Memoir. 

Very  sincerely, 

F.  A.  JONES, 
Member  of  Board  of  Managers. 

Albuquerque.  N.  M.r 
Julv  4.  1904. 


CHAPTER  I. 


GEOLOGY. 

What  is  known  concerning  the  geology  of  New  Mexico  at 
the  present  time  is  in  the  main  fragmentary.  New  Mexico 
affords  the  largest  unexplored  field  for  geological  research  of 
any  section  in  the  Union. 

With  but  few  exceptions,  not  enough  work  has  been  done  in 
any  one  part  of  the  Territory,  whereby  the  geological  relations 
may  be  intelligently  correlated  with  those  in  a  different 
locality.  Aside  from  the  work  of  a  few  investigators,  the 
general  government  has  sorely  neglected  this  region.  Less 
than  a  dozen  topographic  sheets  comprise  the  principal  work 
done  under  the  auspices  of  the  United  States  Geological 
Survey;  not  a  single  complete  quadrangle,  of  any  particular 
locality,  has  been  effected. 

Prom  what  we  have  learned  on  this  subject,  wre  are  very 
much  indebted  to  Drs.  Newberry  and  Hay  den  in  their  cur- 
sory, yet  highly  interesting  investigations,  in  detached  sec- 
tions of  the  Territory;  to  Lieut.  Wheeler  in  his  geographical 
surveys  west  of  the  100th  meridian:  to  the  valuable  monograph 
by  Captain  Button,  supplemented  by  Major  Powell,  on  the 
plateau  region  in  the  vicinity  of  Mount  Taylor;  and  later,  by 
Dr.  Herrick  in  his  series  of  economic  papers  published  in  the 
bulletins  of  the  University  Geological  Survey  of  New  Mexico. 

Valuable  and  comprehensive  as  these  publications  are,  they 
serve  only  as  a  beginning,  and  are  to  be  regarded  as  fragmen- 
tary in  comparison  with  the  great  expanse  of  Territory  that 
remains  untouched  by  scientific  investigation. 

Nowhere  in  the  world  are  the  natural  environments  so 
favorable  for  the  study  of  geological  conditions,  as  exist  in 
New  Mexico.  The  exposure  of  the  rock  system  is  all  that 
could  be  desired  and  may  be  read  as  the  leaves  of  a  book.  The 
great  tilted  orogenic  block  composing  the  Sandia  range,  lying 
east  of  Albuquerque,  is  regarded  as  classic  in  this  extraor- 
dinary type  of  mountain  modeling.  The  bold  escarp  which 


2  NEW    MEXICO   MINES   AND   MINERALS. 

faces  the  Rio  Grande  represents  a  perpendicular  throw  of 
fully  five  thousand  feet. 

The  plateau  region  west  of  Mount  Taylor  and  on  toward  the 
Grand  Canyon  is,  perhaps,  the  most  intensely  interesting 
territory,  where  the  effects  of  erosion  may  be  observed,  that 
can  be  found  in  the  world.  Here  in  this  strange  land  of  the 
Zunis  the  geologist  fancies  he  catches  glimpses  of  the  eternity 


Fig.  1— "TOOTH  OF  TIME,"  near  Acoma.    Photographed  by 
W.  M.  Borrowdale,  19OO. 

of  the  whole  past;  yet,  he  is  forced  to  admit  that  all  of  this 
high  handed  carving  and  sculpturing  has  taken  place  since 
the  great  Cretaceous  rock  system  was  laid  down.  Geologically 
speaking  the  horizon  of  his  view  borders  on  a  comparatively 
recent  period. 

During  Tertiary  times  New  Mexico Vas  a  theater  of  volcanic 
activity;  a  greater  portion  of  the  eruptive  flows  took  place 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS.  3 

during  this  geologic  period.  Most  of  the  so  called  mal  pals 
had  their  origin  at,  and  just  after  the  close  of  the  Tertiary, 
lasting  throughout  the  Pleistocene.  Many  of  these  lavas  (mal 
imis)  are  so  recent  that  it  is  thought  by  some  that  the  early 
Spanish  explorers  may  have  witnessed  some  of  the  lingering 
volcanic  outbreaks.  It  has  been  claimed  that  the  destruction 
of  the  Gran  Quivira  and  some  other  Pueblos  was  due  to  causes 
of  this  nature.  In  the  writer's  opinion,  from  personal 
observations  at  the  Gran  Quivira  and  elsewhere,  such  a 
conclusion  cannot  be  verified  and  would  seem  untenable 
for  lack  of  evidence.  Centuries  before  the  landing  of 
Columbus,  it  is  quite  probable  that  the  aborigines  of  this 
region  may  have  witnessed  some  of  these  outbreaks;  it  seems 
certain,  however,  that  nothing  of  the  kind  has  transpired 
since  the  discovery  of  America.  The  purported  finding  of 
corn,  pieces  of  pottery  and  old  ruins  imbedded  in  lava  has  been 
investigated  by  the  writer  on  several  occasions  and  in  every 
instance  it  was  a  clear  case  of  "mistaken  identity." 

Many  of  the  rivers  of  New  Mexico  have  been  deflected 
from  their  former  courses  by  being  obstructed  and  entirely 
dammed  by  the  more  recent  lava  flows.  The  most  noted 
example  of  this  nature  is  found  in  the  Rio  Grande,  extending 
from  the  upper  part  of  the  Espanola  valley  north  sixty  miles 
to  the  San  Luis  valley  in  Colorado. 

Throughout  this  entire  distance  the  river  channel  was 
completely  filled  by  the  vast  lava  sheet  which  extended  over 
an  area  of  at  least  ten  thousand  square  miles.  It  is  difficult 
to  conjecture  the  position  of  the  old  channel;  it  may  have  been 
as  far  west  as  Ojo  Caliente. 

Throughout  the  whole  sixty  miles  exists  a  grand  gorge, 
carved  through  a  level  plateau,  with  almost  perpendicular 
walls  rising  majestically  over  one  thousand  feet. 

To  this  obstruction  in  the  Rio  Grande  the  origin  of  the 
fertile  San  Luis  valley  is  due.  That  this  valley  was  an  old 
lake  bed  there  is  not  a  shadow  of  doubt;  the  final  opening  of 
the  gorge  drained  this  vast  Pleistocene  lake,  and  the  valley 
of  San  Luis  was  thus  born. 

The  Espanola  valley  had  its  origin  in  a  similar  manner,  due 
to  damming  at  the  railroad  bridge;  not  far  above  Albu- 
querque obstructions  of  this  nature  at  one  time  existed. 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS.  5 

All  of  the  beautiful  valleys  along  the  Gila  and  San  Francisco 
rivers  were  formed  in  like  manner;  the  old  lake  bottom  exists 
in  a  number  of  distinct  terraces,  which  were  formed  at 
different  periods,  as  the  outlet  of  the  river  gorge  was  lowered. 
It  is  not  improbable  that  the  former  course  of  the  San 
Francisco  river  may  have  been  down  Duck  Creek  to  the  Gila 
at  Cliff;  the  nature  of  Duck  Creek  Valley  and  the  difference  in 
levels  of  the  two  rivers  seem  to  favor  this  supposition. 

The  two  principal  classes  of  formations  most  generally 
found  on  the  surface  over  the  territory,  are  the  lavas  (mal 
pais)  and  Cretaceous  rocks. 

In  New  Mexico  it  is  thought  that  about  one-sixth  of  the  land 
surface  is  covered  with  eruptive  sheets  and  fully  one-third  of 
the  whole  area  by  Cretaceous  formations. 

The  minerals  of  economic  importance  most  generally  sought 
in  New  Mexico,  are  associated  with  the  older  classes  of  erup- 
tive rocks  and  later  gravels;  in  the  massive  Carboniferous 
limestone;  and  in  the  later  or  uppermost  Cretaceous  sand- 
stones. 

This  association  of  particular  classes  of  minerals  with 
special  types  of  rock  formation,  is  now  recognized  as  a  matter 
of  fact  by  every  intelligent  person. 

In  being  able  to  recognize  mineral  bearing  horizons  and 
formations,  is  a  qualification  much  to  be  desired  in  the 
successful  pursuit  of  economic  geology. 

A  generalized  vertical  geological  section  of  the  earth's  crust 
in  New  Mexico  is  given  for  comparison  with  similar  sections 
in  other  states  and  elsewhere. 

It  is  seen  that  the  geological  column  is  fairly  complete;  the 
principal  exception  being  the  lower  Paleozoic  rock  system .  At 
Lake  Valley,  Tierra  Blanca  and  near  Silver  City,  it  is  thought 
that  portions  of  the  Silurian  and  Devonian  exist;  confirmation 
on  this  point,  however,  is  lacking.  Any  omissions  of  this 
character  that  may  occur  are  partly  offset  by  a  very  full  de- 
velopment of  the  Permo-Carboniferous  series.  The  sequences 
of  the  "red  beds"  series  are  very  complete,  and  probably  reach 
a  total  thickness  of  3,500  feet  in  certain  localities,  which 
includes  the  Jura-Triassic  systems.  The  "red  series"  are 
conspicuous  for  their  wide  distribution  of  copper,  dissemi- 
nated through  certain  strata  of  shale  and  sandstone.  Since  the 


Fig.  3- VERTICAL  SECTION  OF  THE  EARTH'S  CRUST 
IN  NEW  MEXICO.     By  F.  A.  Jones. 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS.  7 

copper  is  very  low  grade,  but  few  localities  will  pay  to  work. 
Copper  in  many  instances  has  replaced  fossil  plants  and  trees 
in  the  "red  series"  deposits;  this  character  of  ore  is  a  high 
grade  glance. 

The  coal  deposits  of  New  Mexico  all  lie  in  the  upper  Creta- 
ceous sandstones;  some  beds  are  in  the  Laramie  and  others 
belong  to  the  Fox  Hills  series,  or  upper  Montana. 

Only  two  principal  fields  are  definitely  known  to  belong  to 
the  Fox  Hi1  Is  series;  these  are  the  Cerrillos  and  Carthage 
fields. 

It  is  observed  that  the  Fox  Hills  coals  are  superior  in  quality 
to  the  later  Laramie  deposits;  since  their  coking  qualities  are 
much  more  pronounced.  Whether  this  desirable  feature  is 
due  to  the  superiority  in  age,  or  whether  the  conditions  were 
more  favorable  from  being  influenced  by  eruptive  members, 
or  both,  is  a  matter  that  will  require  further  investigation. 

The  Carboniferous  limestones  are  recognized  as  mineral 
carriers,  or  ore  bearing  horizons.  Much  of  the  copper  and 
all  of  the  principal  lead  and  zinc  ores  are  found  in  intimate 
association  with  this  important  series. 

Gold  and  silver  ores  are  most  generally  or  always  found 
intimately  associated  with  the  metamorphic  and  eruptive 
types  of  rocks;  a  good  gold  section  is  usually  recognized  by  the 
intelligent  prospector  as  a  region  having  an  abundance  of 
"porphyry."  To  a  greater  or  lesser  degree  the  associated 
minerals  of  lead,  copper,  zinc,  etc.,  are  found  intermixed  with 
the  gold  and  silver  ores. 

The  occurrence  of  the  rarer  metals,  is  usually  in  association 
with  the  more  plentiful  commercial  metals;  and  are  frequently 
extracted  as  a  by-product. 

In  the  stream  and  river  sands  of  the  Territory  intimately 
connected  with  the  placer  gold  and  black  sand,  platinum  and 
a  number  of  the  heavy  and  rare  metals  unquestionably  exist 
in  a  greater  or  lesser  degree.  Very  little  attention  was  ever 
given  any  of  the  concentrated  black  sand,  and  our  knowledge 
of  its  contents  is  mainly  conjectural. 


CHAPTER  II. 


EARLY  SPANISH  CONQUESTS  FOR  GOLD. 

Shortly  after  the  discovery  of  America,  legends  of  the  glory 
and  riches  of  the  new  world  agitated  the  whole  of  Europe. 
The  successful  conquests  of  Mexico  and  Peru  for  gold  under 
the  leaderships  of  Cortes  and  Pizarro  followed  in  quick 
succession.  Spanish  desire  for  wealth  and  adventure  at  this 
period  was  irrepressible.  New  fields  were  sought;  attention 
finally  was  directed  toward  the  mysterious  land  of  the  north 
—New  Mexico. 

In  the  United  States  of  America,  New  Mexico  is  the  cradle 
of  the  first  conquests  for  the  precious  metals. 

Of  the  many  early  expeditions  of  adventure,  conquest  and 
discovery,  Alvar  Nunez  Cabeza  de  Vaca  and  his  three  com- 
panions were  the  first  Europeans  to  set  foot  on  New  Mexico 
soil,  A.  D.  1534.  They  were,  indeed,  the  true  discoverers; 
having  approached  the  Territory  from  the  east.  This  dis- 
covery may  be  regarded  as  one  of  chance,  and  not  of  conquest; 
since  Cabeza  de  Vaca  was  trying  to  reach  European  civilization 
through  channels  by  way  of  the  west,  in  order  to  escape 
servitude  from  the  coastal  tribes  of  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  where 
he  had  been  held  in  captivity  for  several  years,  having  become 
stranded  on  that  coast  in  a  disastrous  shipwrreck.  Cabeza  de 
Vaca  speaks  of  turquoise  which  he  saw  at  his  farthest  point 
north  in  the  Rio  Grande  valley,  presumably  near  the  present 
site  of  Bernalillo. 

In  1539,  Friar  Marcos  de  Niza,  on  hearing  of  Cabeza  de 
Vaca's  isojourn  to  the  strange  country  in  the  north,  at  once 
fitted  out  an  expedition  and  went  as  far  as  Cibola  (Zuni).  The 
conquest  of  this  friar  was  more  of  a  religious  nature  than  for 
the  aggrandizement  of  wealth.  He  speaks  of  seeing  turquoise 
and  some  gold  during  this  expedition. 

The  most  noted  of  these  early  expeditions  was  made  by  the 
Spanish  general  Francisco  Vasquez  de  Coronado  and  his 
army;  this  was  an  army  of  conquest  for  gold. 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS. 

Coronado  took  pretty  much  the  same  route  as  Friar  Marcos 
de  Niza  and  arrived  at  Cibola  (Zuni)  on  the  9th  day  of  July,  A. 
D.  1540. 

There  can  be  no  doubt  about  Cibola  being  practically  the  old 
Zuni  Pueblo,  of  western  McKinley  county,  near  the  Arizona 
line. 

A  short  time  after  the  arrival  at  Cibola,  Coronado  despatched 
Alvaradb,  a  captain  in  his  army,  to  explore  the  country  south 
and  east.  The  exact  route  taken  by  Captain  Alvarado  is 
somewhat  obscure;  but  he  drifted  to  the  southeast,  touching 
the  Rio  Grande  near  La  Joya  then  following  up  that  stream 
to  a  point  at  or  near  the  present  site  of  Bernalillo.  Here 
Alvarado  was  met  by  his  general  and  all  went  into  winter 
quarters,  until  the  following  spring,  among  the  Pueblos  along 
the  Rio  Grande. 

In  May,  1541,  Coronado  began  his  memorable  march  to  the 
east  and  north  in  search  of  the  famed  city  of  Quivira  (not  Gran 
Quivira),  reaching  that  city  about  the  middle  of  the  summer. 
The  only  metal  seen  at  Quivira  was  a  small  piece  of  copper 
which  the  chief  of  the  tribe  wore  about  his  neck;  this  metal  no 
doubt  came  from  some  of  the  ancient  workings  of  mines  in 
Michigan. 

After  spending  some  days  at  Quivira,  feeling  keenly  the 
disappointment  in  not  finding  treasures  in  gold  and  silver,  he 
returned  with  his  followers  to  the  Rio  Grande,  the  place  where 
they  had  passed  the  winter. 

A  second  winter  was  spent  in  this  rendezvous:  during  the 
meantime  short  expeditions,  under  the  command  of  cap- 
tains, were  sent  out  to  explore  the  contiguous  territory. 

Some  turquoise  and  gold  were  realized  though  not  to  the 
full  extent  of  their  expectations. 

Not  meeting  with  the  success  in  securing  gold,  silver,  and 
precious  gems  that  they  anticipated  before  starting  on  the 
expedition,  disappointed  anddisgusted  at  his  failure,  Coronado 
called  his  forces  together  and  quit  the  country  in  1542,  by 
way  of  the  same  route  that  he  had  entered  the  Territory. 
Thus  ended  the  first  great  hunt  and  conquest  for  gold  in  New 
Mexico. 

From  a  humanitarian  point  of  view,  with  respect  to  the 
treatment  of  the  aborigines  by  the  invaders,  Coronado's  army 


10  NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS. 

might  be  considered  nothing  more  than  organized  highway 
robbery,  rapine  and  murder  perpetrated  on  a  peaceful  and 
harmless  people. 

Some  forty  years  after  the  expedition  of  Coronado,  Don 
Antonio  de  Espejo  visited  Cibola  and  other  places  and  came 
across  several  Christian  Indians  at  Cibola,  who  had  accom- 
panied Coronado  into  this  strange  land  from  Mexico  and  had 
remained  there  ever  since.  Those  Christianized  Indians 
related  stories  to  Espejo's  men  of  populous  cities  on  the  banks 
of  a  great  lake,  far  to  the  west  of  Cibola,  where  gold  wras  so 
plentiful  that  the  women  wore  it  in  the  form  of  bracelets  and 
charms. 

Espejo  returned  to  the  Rio  Grande,  afjber  his  visit  to  Cibola 
and  the  silver  mines  in  Arizona,  and  made  a  journey  to  the 
northeast  from  some  point  on  the  river.  This  brief  record 
says:  "Here  they  were  informed  of  the  rich  mines  of  the 
precious  metals,  some  of  which  they  visited  and  took  from 
them  good  glittering  ore." 

Onate.  like  Coronado,  excited  over  the  legends  of  fabulous 
wealth  lying  to  the  far  northeast,  started  in  June  1601,  for 
Quivira.  As  he  proceeded  on  his  journey,  strange  stories 
of  great  cities  of  this  golden  empire  came  to  his  ears  from 
time  to  time,  which  greatly  stimulated  the  hopes  of  his  army 
of  adventurers.  The  inhabitants  were  said  to  have  utensils  of 
the  precious  metals  and  decorated  their  persons  with  orna- 
ments of  burnished  gold. 

After  chasing  this  phantom  of  imagination  for  some  months, 
Onate  returned  to  San  Juan  about  the  first  part  of  October, 
chagrined  and  disappointed  like  the  irrepressible  commander 
who  preceded  him  thither,  by  some  sixty  years. 

In  1620,  Padre  Geronimo  de  Zarate  Salmerom  speaks  with 
delight  of  New  Mexico's  climate,  agriculture  and  mines,  in 
doing  missionary  work  at  that  time  among  the  Pueblos. 

Apparently  disgusted  and' feeling  much  remorse  over  the 
cruelty  of  his  countrymen  toward  the  aboriginal  tribes,  this 
missionary  declared  that  the  Spaniard  would  enter  the  "doors 
of  hell"  in  order  to  satisfy  his  craving  for  gold,  were  it  possible 
to  obtain  gold  from  that  region. 

Many  expeditions  were  planned  and  executed  under  various 
leaders  from  about  1580  to  the  Pueblo  uprising  a  century  later; 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS.  11 

several  of  these  conquests  were  of  considerable  historic 
interest,  whilst  others  were  mere  incidents  of  adventure. 

Narratives  of  fabulous  wealth  of  some  mystic  Eldorado, 
were  to  the  conquering  Spaniard,  always  a  stimulus  for 
further  adventure  and  conquest. 

Stories  of  lost  or  hidden  treasurers  always  have  a  charm  of 
romance  and  mystery  woven  about  the*n,  and  it  is  never 
difficult  to  find  believers  in  such  traditions. 

It  is  said  that  a  treasure  of  $3,000,000  in  gold  is  buried 
beneath  the  ruins  of  the  old  church  of  the  Gran  Quivira  in 
eastern  Socorro  county.  This  vast  fortune,  it  is  claimed,  was 
in  the  custody  of  the  hierarchy  at  the  time  the  city  was 
destroyed  by  a  volcanic  eruption.  This  ancient  Pueblo  was 
likely  contemporaneous  with  the  principal  cities  of  the  Rio 
Grande  valley,  and  passed  into  decadence  from  the  same 
causes  that  obliterated  most  every  other  aboriginal  Pueblo  in 
the  west.  Prom  the  nature  of  the  ruins,  especially  that  of  the 
old  church,  it  is  not  at  all  improbable  that  a  great  portion  of 
this  city  was  of  Spanish  as  well  as  Pueblo  origin. 

The  extinct  volcanic  crater,  situate  at  the  north  end  of  the 
great  lava  flow  (locally  known  as  the  malpais),  is  what  has  been 
suggested  as  the  source  which  dealt  destruction  to  the  city. 
This  crater  is  some  thirty-five  miles  to  the  south  and  a  little 
east  of  the  Gran  Quivira.  The  writer  has  examined  into  this 
matter  critically  and  can  see  absolutely  no  evidence  that  would 
in  any  way  connect  the  destruction  of  the  Pueblo  with  the 
volcano.  It  is  possible  that  the  city  may  have  been  abandoned, 
due  to  the  effect  of  seismic  disturbances,  which  caused  the 
water  to  sink  in  its  natural  basin,  from  whence  the  inhabitants 
formerly  derived  their  supply;  since  one  of  the  old  basins  of 
Pueblo  times,  some  six  miles  to  the  southwest,  is  used  by  a 
ranchman  at  the  present  time;  the  impervious  adobe  floor  with 
the  imprint  of  fingers  was  plainly  to  be  seen. 

The  evidence  is  such  as  would  indicate  that  the  volcanic  flow 
which  formed  the  mat  pais  must  have  taken  place  at  least  three 
centuries  before  the  advent  of  the  Spaniards,  and  in  all  prob- 
ability at  a  still  earlier  date. 

The  ruins  of  the  Gran  Quivira  have  been  dug  into  in  many 
places,  at  various  times,  by  different  persons,  who  have  been 
lured  to  that  desolate  spot  by  mythical  traditions,  in  search 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES    AND   MINERALS.  13 

for  the  buried  treasu  re.  Not  a  dollar  in  gold  or  silver  has  ever 
come  from  those  old  ruins,  so  far  as  the  writer  has  been  able 
to  find  out. 

Some  mining  in  a  desultory  manner,  has  no  doubt  been 
carried  on  in  New  Mexico,  under  Spanish*  rule,  and  a  little, 
perhaps,  done  by  the  aborigines.  Yet  the  evidence,  aside  from 
the  turquoise  mines  at  Los  Cerrillos  and  the  Burro  mountains 
is  sufficient  to  satisfy  the  statement  that  no  true  metal  mining 
was  ever  cr^rried  on  within  the  borders  of  New  Mexico  until 
about  the  beginning  of  the  year  1800;  with  the  possible 
exception  of  Mina  del  Tierra  in  the  vicinity  of  the  turquoise 
near  Los  Cerrillos. 

Governor  Chacon  in  1803,  says  :  "Copper  is  abundant,  and 
apparently  rich,  but  no  mines  are  worked." 

Lieutenant  Pike  in  1807,  speaks  of  only  one  mine  in  New 
Mexico;  the  inference  being,  no  doubt,  the  copper  mine  at 
Santa  Rita. 

Pino  in  1812  mentioned  that  old  silver  mines  had  been  found 
closed  up  with  the  tools  inside;  these  workings  were  perhaps 
nothing  more  than  prospects  and  had  been  done  by  the 
Spaniards  prior  to  the  Pueblo  revolt  in  1680.  The  evidence 

*The  uprising  ol  the  Pueblo  Indians  in  1680  was  said  to  have  been  due  to  the  hardships 
of  slavery  inflicted  on  those  people  by  the  Spaniards,  principally  in  working  the  mines. 
Be  this  as  it  may,  history  tells  us  that  the  Spaniards  had  to  flee  the  country  as  a  result 
of  their  extreme  cruelty  d,rd  barbarity.  About  the  close  of  the  17th  century  they 
returned,  and  it  was  expressly  stipulated  by  the  Pueblo  Indians  that  they  should  not 
again  engage  in  mining,  but  only  in  agricultural  pursuits. 

It  seems  that  the  Jesuits  were,  formerly,  the  principal  miners  before  the  revolt  of 
1680,  and  they  were  the  ones  on  whom  the  Pueblos  mainly  wreaked  their  vengeance  in 
a  general  massacre. 

Tradition  has  it  that  all  the  know  a  mines  at  that  time  were  filled  in  andsocompletely 
covered  up,  that  when  the  Spaniards  returned  and  who  were  prohibited  from  doing 
mining,  the  succeeding  generations  were  unable  to  discover  the  mines  again.  During 
the  temporary  exodus  of  the  Spaniard  from  the  country,  the  records  were  either 
destroyed  by  the  Pueblos  or  were  carried  to  Mexico  and  Spain  by  the  fugitives  in  their 
flight,  resulting  in  the  complete  obliteration  of  all  the  early  mines  and  mining  records  of 
the  country. 

From  all  the  evidence  obtainable  on  the  early  Spanish  mines,  we  are  forced  to  the 
conclusion  that  the  mining  in  that  day  was  scarcely  removed  from  what  we  now  term 
prospecting. 

The  writer  has  had  exceptional  opportunities  to  examineinto  all  the  purported  Span- 
ish mines  in  the  Territory,  and  must  confess  that,  with  the  exceptions  of  the  turquoise 
mines  and  Mina  del  Tierra,  nothing  else  has  been  seen  that  would  approach  the  resem- 
blance of  a  mine  up  to  the  present  time. 

In  the  archives  at  Santa  Fe,  under  date  of  1713,  is  the  document  of  Nxestra  Sra.  <I> 
los  Reyes  de  Linares,  vvhich  refers  to  an  old  covered  up  mine  in  Sierra  de  San  Lazora. 
(Old  Placer  Mountain).  And  in  1711  a  gift  of  the  whole  or  part  of  this  same  mine  was- 
made. 

After  this  date  about  the  year  1800.  the  Santa  Rita  mine  wasdiscovered  and  worked. 
Then  followed  the  real  discovery  of  the  Old  Placers  in  1828.  On  December,  1833,  the 
snafu  Roxalia  grant  was  recorded  in  favor  of  Jose  Francisco  Ortiz,  in  the  Sierra  de  Oro, 
west  of  Mina  del  Compromise,  (north  and  south).  The  following  day  December  19th. 
1833,  a  record  of  a  mine  was  made  adjoining  the  Ortiz  mine.  The  New  Placers  were 
discovered  in  1839. 

In  1846,  the  Santo  Nino,  north  of  the  Ortiz  mine.  (Old  Placer),  is  recorded;  as  also,  in 
the  same  year,  a  mine  in  the  Real  San.  Francisco  del  Tuerto. 

This  practically  constitutes  most  every  thing  pertaining  to  the  records  of  the  earlier 
mines. 


14  NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS. 

seems  conclusive  that  no  mines  of  either  silver  or  gold  were 
worked  to  any  extent  prior  to  1800;  save  some  little  gold  picked 
from  the  gravels  at  various  points  throughout  the  Territory 
and  from  the  silver  lead  mines  in  the  vicinity  of  Los  Cerrillos, 
so  alluded  to  above. 

Under  Spanish  rule  prospecting  for  placer  gold  was  carried 
on  to  a  certain  extent;  yet  no  rich  finds  were  ever  brought  to 
notice,  excepting  at  the  Old  and  New  Placers. 

There  would  be  no  good  reason  to  claim  that  the  Pueblo 
Indians  or  the  early  Spanish  explorers  were  better  qualified 
to  find  rich  mines  than  the  modern  prospector  of  today. 

The  Spaniard  has  been  a  gold  hunter  from  the  earliest  times 
and  placer  gold  was  the  kind  he  knew  most  about;  lode  mines 
were  not  so  alluring  to  him. 

There  are  a  number  of  old  workings  in  New  Mexico,  of 
limited  extent  and  presumably  of  Spanish  origin,  which  have 
been  discovered  by  the  modern  prospector;  but  the  richness 
of  the  ore  or  deposits  has  been  almost  invariably  disap- 
pointing. 

It  might  be  added  here  that  the  traditional  stories  of  lost 
mines  are  the  ignes  Jatui  that  have  held  many  a  prospector 
spell-bound  and  carried  him  into  unknown  regions,  ultimately 
resulting  in  giving  to  the  world  a  Cripple  Creek  or  a  Klondike. 

The  enchanted  Adam's  diggings,  the  legendary  Peg-leg 
lode,  the  mythical  Log  Cabin  mine  and  similar  stories  of  lost 
lodes,  exist  in  imagination  only;  yet,  they  serve  as  a  stimulus 
to  the  prospector  who  with  pick  and  pan  paves  the  way  for 
civilization.  Such  fantasies  when  viewed  from  an  unprejudiced 
standpoint,  are  to  be  regarded  as  real  and  necessary  factors 
in  the  successful  hunt  for  gold. 


CHAPTER   III. 


PLACERS. 

It  should  be  noted  in  the  foregoing  chapter  that  the  placer 
tields  of  New  Mexico  were  the  first  to  come  into  notice  in  the 
mining  of  the  precious  metals  and  were  exploited  to  a  certain 
extent  by  the  Spaniards, and  also,  perhaps,  in  a  few  instances, 
some  gold  was  taken  from  the  superficial  gravel  beds  in  the 
vicinity  of  the  the  Ortiz  mountains  and  some  of  the  streams 
by  the  Pueblo  Indians,  prior  to  the  coming  of  the  Spaniards. 
In  the  latter  instance  this  would  not  properly  come 
under  mining  as  such  finds  would  be  classed  as  purely 
accidental. 

Before  describing  any  of  the  gold  bearing  lodes,  a  general 
idea  of  the  extent  and  nature  of  the  placer  fields  of  the 
Territory  should  first  be  briefly  considered. 

The  magnitude  of  the  placer  area  of  New  Mexico  is  but 
little  comprehended  by  the  unobserving  person.  The  area 
will  approximate  four  hundred  and  fifty  square  miles;  the 
richness  of  which  will  average  not  less  than  sixteen  cents  per 
cubic  yard  of  gravel  throughout  the  entire  deposit. 

It  is  true  that  the  greater  portion  of  these  vast  fields  may 
never  be  successfully  worked;  yet  we  dare  not  circumscribe 
the  workable  area,  since  modern  engineering  skill  and  genius 
would  defy  a  fixed  limit.  It  is  no  exaggeration  in  saying  that 
most  every  handful  of  sand  and  gravel  from  any  of  the  streams 
and  gulches  of  New  Mexico  carries  gold  values. 

The  \vriter,  when  Director  of  the  School  of  Mines  of  New 
Mexico,  made  a  number  of  delicate  experiments  along  this 
line,  of  the  stream  sands  taken  from  near  the  surface  deposits 
of  the  Rio  Grande  and  the  Galisteo  river  and  only  in  a  few 
instances  wras  the  absence  of  gold  noted. 

The  enormous  erosion  which  has  been  in  course  of  operation 
throughout  the  past  geological  ages,  due  to  the  uplifting  of  the 
great  western  plateau  region,  was  the  means  of  liberating  the 
particles  of  gold  and  concentrating  the  same  in  the  beds  of  the 


16  NEW    MEXICO   MINES  AND   MINERALS. 

various  gulches  and  streams.  Owing  to  the  great  specific 
gravity  of  gold  it  naturally  accumulates  at  the  lowest  points, 
in  pockets  and  riffles  close  to  or  on  bed  rock;  and  it  is  there 
that  we  should  expect  to  find  the  richest  deposits. 

From  the  foregoing  it  is  observed  that  the  Rio  Grande  basin 
is  evidently  the  largest  receptacle  for  such  accumulations,  and 
undoubtedly  contains  more  gold  than  any  other  stream  in  New 
Mexico. 

The  enormous  wealth  lying  in  the  bed  of  this  stream  cannot 
be  arrived  at,  even  approximately. 

In  speaking  of  the  placers  of  the  Rio  Grande,  above  Espa- 
nola,  Professor  Silliman  says  :  "Here  are  countless  millions 
of  tons  of  rich  gold  quartz  reduced  by  the  great  forces  of 
nature  to  a  condition  ready  for  the  hydraulic  process,  while 
the  entire  bed  of  the  Rio  Grande  for  forty  miles  is  a  sluice  on 
the  bars  of  which  the  gold  derived  from  the  wearing  away  of 
the  gravel  banks  has  been  accumulating  for  countless  ages, 
and  now  lies  ready  for  extraction  by  the  most  improved 
methods  of  river  mining.  The  thickness  of  the  Rio  Grande 
gravels  often  exceeds  six  hundred  feet,  or  three  times  that  of 
like  beds  in  California,  while  the  average  value  per  cubic  yard 
is  believed  to  be  greater  than  in  other  accumulations  yet 
discovered." 

The  thickness  of  the  gravel  beds  at  places  not  contiguous  to 
the  Rio  Grande  is  often  very  considerable.  An  artesian  well 
was  sunk  at  Taos  a  few  years  ago  to  a  depth  of  over  four 
hundred  feet,  which  was  in  gravel  the  whole  distance.  The 
drillings  from  this  well  were  panned  at  intervals  during  the 
progress  of  the  work,  gold  being  found  in  every  pan. 

The  Moreno  valley  at  Elizabethtown  at  one  time  was  a  lake, 
several  hundred  feet  deep;  but,  since  the  Cimarron  river  has 
cut  through  the  dike,  forming  the  gateway  to  the  valley,  the 
lake  was  thus  drained,  leaving  a  deposit  of  sediment  from 
twenty-five  to  three  hundred  feet  thick.  Every  place  where 
bed  rock  or  hard  pan  has  been  reached  in  this  valley  plain, 
gold  has  been  found  in  considerable  quantities.  The  large 
dredge  of  the  Oro  Dredging  Company ,  operating  in  the  Moreno 
river  about  one  mile  below  Elizabethtown,  is  meeting  with 
remarkably  good  success.  This  river  flows  through  the  north 
half  of  the  Moreno  valley  and  forms  a  junction  near  the  gate- 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS.  It 

way  with  the  Cieneguilla  river  which  drains  the  south  end  of 
the  valley.  The  Moreno  river,  being  rich  in  gold  has  for  ages 
deposited  all  its  sediment  in  the  Moreno  lake  basin;  there  can 
be  no  question  or  doubt,  whatever,  about  the  richness  of  the 
auriferous  sands  and  gravels  of  the  old  lake  bed. 

The  richness  and  extent  of  the  Moreno  placers,  embracing 
those  of  Willow  creek  and  Ute  creek,  the  latter  lying  on  the 
east  and  opposite  side  of  Baldy  mountain,  are  not  paralleled 
by  any  other  deposits  in  the  Territory.  Further  mention  will 
be  made  of  the  placers  about  Baldy  mountain,  when  the  lode 
mines  are  discussed,  in  that  section  of  the  country. 

The  extensive  area  of  auriferous  sands  and  gravels  which 
surround  the  basal  slope  of  the  Ortiz  mountains  have  been 
almost  continuously  worked  since  their  discovery  in  1828. 
The  new  placers  at  Golden  may  also  be  included  with  the 
deposits  of  the  Ortiz  mountains,  which  were  discovered  eleven 
years  later. 

Describing  a  quadrant,  with  the  point  where  the  Galisteo  is 
intercepted  by  the  Rio  Grande  as  its  center,  and  with  a  radius 
of  twenty-five  miles,  most  all  of  the  area  embraced  in  this 
quadrantal  sector,  may  be  considered  placer  ground. 

The  whole  of  the  channel  of  the  Galisteo  river  is  one  vast 
sluice  box;  the  gold  collecting  in  the  depressions  and  seams 
of  the  rocks  that  form  the  river  bed.  The  same  thing  will 
apply  to  the  Rio  Grande;  the  only  difference  is  that  in  the  lat- 
ter sluicing  is  being  conducted  on  a  more  gigantic  scale. 

A  section  to  bed  rock  of  the  Rio  Grande  showing  the 
different  strata  passed  through,  with  the  assay  value  thereof, 
per  cubic  yard,  is  shown  in  Fig.  5.  This  section  is  taken  from 
Professor  Arthur  Lakes'  hand  book  on  "Prospecting  for  Gold 
and  Silver  in  North  America.'' 

This  probing  of  the  river  bed  was  done  by  the  Santa  Fe 
Placer  Company  under  the  direction  of  Professor  E.  Walters, 
geologist;  on  account  of  the  strong  sub-now  the  shaft  was  sunk 
by  the  aid  of  the  pneumatic  caisson.  The  value  per  cubic  yard 
at  bed  rock  was  found  to  be  $6.25. 

The  trough  of  the  Rio  Grande  is  thus  seen  to  be  a  vast  store- 
house of  gold. 

The  Oro  Grande  Company  of  Pennsylvania,  with  J.  P. 
Rinker  of  Tres  Piedras,  manager,  has  begun  the  construe- 


18 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS. 


tion  of  a  dredge  to  work  the  auriferous  sands  and  gravels  in 
the  bed  of  the  Rio  Grande,  above  Cieneguilla,  in  Taos  county. 

The  river  bed  for  several  miles  at  this  point  is  considered 
favorable  for  dredging;  since  bed  rock  or  hard  pan  in  most 
places  is  only  from  two  to  ten  feet  deep.  The  river  is  very 
narrow  and  all  the  water  is  confined  to  a  restricted  channel, 
which  will  be  especially  beneficial  in  floating  the  dredge. 

Owing  to  large  boulders  of  mat  pais  which  are  said  to  cover 
the  river  bottom  at  every  few  feet,  this  company  may  meet 
with  some  very  serious  trouble  in  coping  with  the  same;  with 


Gray  «"«  «  cl  s  to  n  e-f  Ptfi  Z  0*£. 


Fig.  5 -VERTICAL  SECTION  OF  THE  RIO  GRANDE  BASIN. 

this  difficulty  overcome,  the  other  operations  are  to  be 
regarded  as  favorable  to  dredging. 

These  mal  pa  is  boulders  frequently  attain  enormous  propor- 
tions; they  having  fallen  into  the  river  gorge  by  the  gradual 
recession  of  the  cliffs,  which  are  very  precipitous  on  either 
side  of  the  river.  This  grand  gorge  of  the  Rio  Grande  extends 
from  a  point  about  five  miles  below  Embudo  north  to  the  San 
Luis  Valley,  a  distance  of  about  sixty  miles. 

The  river  has  considerable  fall  all  through  that  distance  and 
bed  rock  is  very  shallow. 


NEW    MEXICO   MINES  AND   MINERALS.  19 

Much  or  all  of  the  placer  gold  along  the  river  here  evidently 
had  its  origin  in  the  Sangre  de  Cristo  range  of  mountains. 
Tributary  to  this  locality  are  the  Rio  Hondo  placers,  said  to 
have  been  worked  by  the  early  Spanish  explorers,  under  the 
Jesuits. 

The  placers  around  Pinos  Altos  are  inaccessible  from  any 
large  supply  of  water,  and  must  be  worked  on  a  smaller  scale 
than  those  of  the  Moreno  valley  or  Rio  Grande.  The  same  is 
also  true  of  the  Jicarilla  gravels  in  Lincoln  county,  north  of 
White  Oaks. 

The  newly  discovered  placer  fields  of  the  Pittsburg  mining 
district,  lying  at  the  base  of  the  Caballo  mountains,  in  Apache 
canyon,  next  to  the  Rio  Grande,  have  the  advantage  of  being 
on  or  near  the  river;  but,  the  water  must  be  elevated  several 
hundred  feet  to  reach  the  rich  ground  should  mining  be  done 
on  an  extensive  scale.  This,  however,  is  a  problem  to  be 
solved  by  mining  engineers,  should  exploitation  of  those  fields 
prove  them  to  be  sufficiently  rich  in  gold,  to  justify  the 
installation  of  a  large  pumping  plant.  At  Jarilla,  in  Otero 
county,  good  ground  exists,  although  the  field  is  quite  limited 
in  area. 

The  excitement  over  the  find  of  the  Caballo  mountain  placers 
had  scarcely  subsided  when  a  dispatch  reported  that  a  new 
gold  field  was  discovered  on  January  20,  1904,  eighteen  miles 
east  of  Tucumcari,  on  Revuelto  creek,  Quay  county.  A  few 
days  later  the  find  was  declared  a  hoax  and  that  the  ground 
had  been  salted. 

The  Las  Animas  placers  at  Slap-jack  hill  and  in  the  depres- 
sion and  flats  below  have  produced  more  gold  by  dry  processes 
than  most  any  other  dry  camp  in  New  Mexico. 

This  field  lies  north  of  Hillsboro  and  is  producing  at  the 
present  time  about  $450  per  month;  the  gold  being  taken  out 
by  the  primitive  methods  of  the  Mexican. 

At  one  time,  shortly  after  the  discovery  of  gold  in  this 
section,  hydraulic  mining  was  carried  on  to  a  certain  degree 
of  success;  but  owing  to  the  inadequate  water  supply,  which 
was  piped  from  considerable  distance,  this  method  was  aban- 
doned. 

Near  Good  Hope,  in  Rio  Arriba  county,  an  hydraulic  plant 
is  being  installed  by  J.  P.  Gill,  and  it  is  expected  to  begin  work 


20  NEW   MEXICO   MINES  AND   MINERALS. 

at  a  very  early  day.  These  placer  grounds  are  rather  circum- 
scribed in  their  superficial  extent. 

A  few  miles  above  Abiquiu.  on  the  Rio  Chama,  there  exists 
an  extensive  area  of  river  sands  and  gravels  which  have  been 
prospected  by  some  two  or  three  companies  with  favorable 
results. 

In  1900  some  Kansas  City  and  St.  Louis  capitalists  tried  to 
work  the  'ground,  but  failed  to  make  a  success  of  the  enter- 
prise. The  failure  was  due  to  the  process  adopted,  the  dredges 
used,  being  constructed  on  wrong  mechanical  principles  and 
were  not  able  to  handle  the  material,  or  even  save  the  values 
after  the  gravels  were  excavated. 

This  ground  will  average  about  twenty-three  cents  per  cubic 
yard  on  the  benches  on  either  side  of  the  river  and  as  much 
as  $2.20  per  yard  on  the  bed  of  the  stream. 

These  gravel  beds  range  from  twenty-five  to  forty  feet  in 
thickness,  and  have  their  origin,  in  part,  in  Colorado,  on  the 
east  side  of  the  continental  divide.  Much  black  sand  exists  in 
this  gravel  which  carries  good  values  in  gold  and  perhaps, 
some  platinum. 

George  S.  Du  Bois  has  recently  discovered  placer  gold  near 
the  head  of  the  Las  Animas  creek  in  Sierra  county,  the 
discovery  was  made  during  March,  1904. 

In  other  portions  of  the  Territory  aside  from  those  men- 
tioned, placer  mining  is  being  conducted  successfully  in  a 
small  way  by  Mexicans;  and  still  in  other  places  where  the 
prospects  are  quite  favorable,  the  conditions  for  lack  of  water, 
wood  and  transportation,  bar  anything  whatever  from  being 
done. 


CHAPTER   IV. 

NEW  PLACER  (Silver  Butte)  DISTRICT. 

This  district  lies  to  the  south  of  Cerrillos,  a  town  on  the 
Atchison,  Topeka  &  Santa  Fe  railway,  in  Santa  Fe  county, 
and  near  the  west  line  thereof. 

Most  mining  districts  in  New  Mexico  are  very  indefinite  in 
regard  to  their  extent  or  area:  generally  embracing  a  whole 
cluster  or  range  of  mountains  or  continuous  mineralized  belts, 
regardless  of  size  or  shape. 

Thus  it  is  with  the  New  Placers;  they  are  supposed  to  in- 
clude everything  to  the  plains  each  way,  from  the  north  slope 
of  the  Ortiz  mountains  south,  to  the  plains  south  of  South 
mountain.  This  embraces  theOrti  zmountains,  theOld  Placers, 
Dolores,  Golden,  New  Placers,  San  Pedro  and  South  moun- 
tain. As  a  gold  mining  district  this  is  the  oldest  in  New 
Mexico;  it  is  also  noted  for  its  recent  production  of  copper. 

Nuggets  of  gold  were  no  doubt  picked  up  occasionally  in 
this  area,  by  the  Pueblo  Indians;  though  no  real  mining  was 
ever  conducted  in  this  field  by  those  people,  so  far  as  any 
evidence  can  be  obtained.  It  was  in  the  year  1828  when  gold 
was  first  discovered  in  this  district.  The  point  of  discovery 
is  .what  is  known  as  the  "Old  Placers;"  and  was  made  by  a 
herder  from  Sonora.  It  is  said  that  some  of  his  herd  strayed 
into  the  Ortiz  mountains  whither  he  wrent  in  search  of  it;  see- 
ing a  stone  which  he  thought  resembled  some  of  the  gold 
bearing  rocks  of  Sonora,  he  examined  it  and  the  rock  proved 
to  be  rich  in  gold. 

News  of  the  discovery  soon  spread  and  the  excitement  was 
intense.  The  most  crude  appliances  imaginable  were  used; 
notwithstanding,  considerable  gold  was  taken  out.  Winter 
seemed  to  be  the  most  favored  time  for  mining;  by  melting 
the  snow  with  hot  rocks  they  were  able  to  work  until  the  dry 
season  of  the  year.  The  gold  was  washed  or  panned  out  in  a 
"batea,'?  a  sort  of  round  wooden  bowl,  about  the  same  di- 
ameter of  the  modern  gold  pan.  The  mode  of  operation  was 


22  NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS. 

first  to  fill  the  "batea"  with  the  auriferous  sands  and  gravels, 
and  then  immersing  the  whole  in  water  and  by  constant 
stirring  and  agitation,  the  mass  of  sands  and  gravels  was 
reduced  until  nothing  but  black  sands  and  particles  of  gold 
remained  in  the  wooden  vessel;  this  mass  of  black  sands  and 
gold  was  then  reduced  in  a  clay  retort  to  obtain  existing 
values,  after  the  largest  nuggets  and  particles  of  gold  were 
first  removed. 

According  to  Prince's  History  of  New  Mexico,  between 
$60,000  and  $80,000  in  gold  was  taken  out  annually  between 
the  years  1832  and  1835.  The  poorest  years  about  this  period 
were  from  $30,000  to  $40,000. 

About  this  time  an  order  was  given  prohibiting  any  person 
from  working  the  mines  excepting  the  natives.  Foreign 
capital  and  energy  was  thus  excluded,  which  greatly  ham- 
pered and  handicapped  development.  Under  this  new  regime, 
each  Mexican  miner  held  one  claim,  the  size  of  which  was  ten 
paces  in  all  directions  from  the  main  discovery  pit.  Any  claim 
not  kept  alive  by  labor  after  a  certain  length  of  time,  was 
subject  to  relocation. 

The  gold  was  mainly  in  nuggets  and  dust;  one  nugget* 
claimed  to  have  been  found  was  worth  $3,400,  which  netted  the 
finder  only  $1,400.  If  true,  this  was  the  largest  nugget  ever 
discovered  in  New  Mexico.  The  fineness  of  this  gold  is  about 
918.  It  would  be  hard  to  estimate  the  exact  amount  of  gold 
taken  from  the  "Old  Placers,"  but  it  must  have  been  consid- 
erable. 

Thomas  A.  Edison,  the  celebrated  American  inventor, 
erected  in  1900  a  large  plant  at  Dolores  to  operate  on  these 
rich  gravels;  after  making  some  experimental  runs  the  plant 
was  closed  down  indefinitely.  The  process  was  held  a  secret. 

Much  rich  ground  yet  exists  in  this  section;  but  owing  to 
the  Ortiz  grant  having  passed  into  the  hands  of  a  syndicate, 
which  holds  it  under  a  99-year  lease,  little  or  no  work  has  been 
done  of  late.  Apparently,  the  policy  of  the  lessee  is  obstruc- 
tive to  the  interests  of  the  district,  as  it  will  not  allowr  pros- 
pecting of  any  kind  on  the  property;  neither  will  it  sub -lease. 

This  land  grant  covers  all  of  the  Ortiz  mountain  and  the  best 
part  of  the  placer  grounds  of  the  district;  it  embraces  an  area 

*The  size  of  the  nugget  thus  reported  is  much  to  be  doubted. 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS. 


23 


of  ten  square  miles,  having  the  Old  Ortiz  mine  as  the  center 
of  the  grant. 

In  1833  a  vein  of  gold  bearing  quartz  was  discovered  on  the 
Ortiz  property,  which  was  on  the  famous  Sierra  del  Oro,  and 
now  known  as  the  Ortiz  mine.*  The  owner  of  the  property 
took  into  partnership  a  Spaniard  by  the  name  of  Lopez,  a 
person  well  skilled  in  mining  of  that  day. 

Through  the  management  of  Lopez,  their  mining  operations 
were  successful  and  a  considerable  sum  of  money  was 
realized. 

Wishing  to  retain  the  full  production  of  the  mine,  through 
jealousy  and  cupidit^or  gold,  Ortiz  sought  a  channel  to  rid 
himself  of  his  Spanish  colleague.  The  plan  was  carried  out 


Fig.  6  -ORTIZ  MINE;   the  Shaded  Portion  Shows  Extent  of  Mexican  Stopes 
Prior  to  185O.    From  an  Old  Map;  Scale  2OO  Feet  to  the  Inch. 

under  the  pretense  of  an  obsolete  decree  which  forbade  any 
Castillian  from  residing  or  operating  in  New  Mexico. 

Accordingly,  Lopez  was  forced  to  leave  the  country.  Ortiz 
then  formed  a  copartnership  with  several  of  the  rascally  offi- 
cials, who  were  connected  with  the  expulsion  of  Lopez,  and 
proceeded  to  work  the  mine. 

The  new  management  not  being  familiar  with  mining 
operations  were  wholly  unsuccessful;  history  tells  us  that 
they  did  not  obtain  "one  grain  of  gold.'' 

This  famous  historical  mine  has  been  worked  at  intervals 
ever  since  its  discovery,  recent  years  excepted.  The  vein, 

*The  claim  made  by  some  that  the  Ortiz  mine  is  the  oldest  lode  mine  in  America  is 
a  mistake;  Mina  del  Tierra,  in  the  Cerrillos  district,  exceeds  it  by  100  years,  at  least.  In 
fact  the  Santa  Rita  mine  is  a  quarter  of  a  century  older.  DonCano,  the  discoverer  of 
the  Ortiz  mine,  came  to  Mexico  from  Spain  in  the  early  part  of  the  19th  century. 


24  NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS. 

apparently,  is  enclosed  in  syenite-porphyry;  its  strike  is  N. 
13°  E.  and  its  dip  is  75°  toward  the  northwest. 

The  vein  outcropping  is  an  oxidized  iron-stained  quartz; 
below  the  depth  of  85  feet  the  ore  becomes  base,  carrying 
sulphurets  of  both  iron  and  copper. 

The  top  portion  of  the  vein  was  first  worked  out  on  account 
of  its  free  milling  qualities. 

The  New  Mexico  Mining  Company  which  acquired  the  Ortiz 
grant  in  1864,  was  first  organized  in  1853  and  incorporated  in 
1858. 

In  1865  this  company  began  the  erection  of  a  20-stamp  mill 
which  was  completed  in  the  early  part  of  the  year  following. 
This  stamp  mill  was  the  first  erected  in  New  Mexico. 

A  certain  degree  of  success  crowned  the  efforts  of  this 
company;  and  in  1869  it  began  adding  an  additional  20-stamps 
to  its  plant. 

The  ore  was  conveyed  from  the  mine  to  the  mill  by  means 
of  a  tramway.  After  a  few  intermittent  mill  runs  the  mine 
closed  down;  bad  management  the  cause. 

Some  years  later  another  company  erected  a  large  amalga- 
mating and  concentrating  plant  at  the  mine,  which  was  never 
operated  successfully. 

The  Cunningham  mine,  in  Cunningham  gulch,  near  Dolores, 
is  also  well  and  favorably  known  to  the  district.  This  is 
among  the  earliest  locations  of  the  district;  belonging  now  to 
the  Sandia  Gold  Mining  and  Milling  Company. 

The  outcropping  is  immense;  the  width  of  the  vein  is  about 
600  feet  and  can  be  traced  for  a  long  distance.  So  bold  is  the 
outcropping  that  it  can  scarcely  be  classed  as  a  vein;  but  more 
properly  what  miners  term  a  "blowout." 

The  whole  of  this  mineralized  dike  consists  of  quartz  and 
feldspar  with  rich  seams  or  streaks  passing  through  it  in 
various  directions.  The  quartz  is  more  or  less  stained  with 
oxide  of  iron  at  and  near  the  surface;  with  depth  the  ore 
becomes  refractory.  The  hanging  wall  is  a  syenite-porphyry 
and  the  foot  wall  a  quartz-porphyry.  The  dip  and  strike  of  this 
lode  conform  with  the  Ortiz  vein. 

Among  other  and  familiar  lodes  may  be  mentioned  the 
Candelaria,  belonging  to  the  Galisteo  Company;  the  Brehm 
lode  originally  worked  under  the  management  of  the  New 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS.  25 

Mexico  Mining  Company  which  owned  the  Ortiz  mine,  the 
Hutchason  lode,*  the  Brown  lode,  and  the  Humboldt  100th;  the 
latter  lode  named  in  honor  of  Humboldt's  centennials.  The 
Shoshone  is  also  a  prominent  lode  which  has  been  more 
recently  located.  All  of  the  above  lodes  lie  near  Dolores  and 
the  gold  from  the  Old  Placers  evidently  came  from  these 
veins,  due  to  the  action  of  erosion. 

The  New  Placers  from  which  the  district  takes  its  name  is 
situate  some  four  or  live  miles  to  the  south  of  the  Old  Placers 
in  the  Tuerto  (San  Pedro)  mountains.  This  new  tield  was 
discovered  in  1839;  eleven  years  later  than  the  Old  Placers. 

Much  gold  has  been  taken  from  the  gulches  at  this  place: 
the  Shn  Lazarus  gulch  is  quite  a  steady  producer  at  the 
present  time. 

In  the  vicinity  of  Golden,  which  is  the  newest  part  of  the 
placer  district,  much  activity  is  manifested,  and  considerable 
success  attends  the  efforts  of  modern  mining.  The  gravels  in 
this  section  average  from  twenty-five  cents  to  one  dollar  per 
yard  of  material  handled.  Scarcity  of  water,  as  at  the  Old 
Placers,  is  a  serious  obstacle  in  working  this  ground.  The 
fineness  of  the  gold  is  about  920. 

Concerning  the  geology  of  the  New  Placer  district  it  seems 
that  the  trio—South  mountain,  Tuertos  (San  Pedro)  and  Ortiz 
mountains — are  most  intimately  connected  in  their  origin  and 
had  their  birth  in  one  common  disturbance.  The  orographic 
line  of  weakness  was  north  and  south;  on  this  line  the  three 
pustules  of  syenite-porphyry  broke  through  the  horizontal 
sedimentary  capping  of  the  overlying  Carboniferous  and 
Cretaceous  series.  Generally  speaking  the  topography  of 
these  groups  is  identical. 

South  mountain  is  not  so  familiar  to  the  general  public  as 
the  other  two  groups;  inasmuch,  that  section  appears  to 
be  less  mineralized  than  the  Tuerto  and  Ortiz  localities. 

At  the  Tuertos  (San  Pedro),  which  are  about  three  miles 
north  of  South  mountain,  the  sedimentary  series  have  been 
partly  elevated  and  dip  about  15°  toward  the  east.  The 
Oroquai  mountain  which  is  the  eastern  member  of  the  Tuertos 
is  entirely  stripped  of  any  former  sedimentary  covering, 

*Col.  J.  S.  Hutchason  (Old  Hutch),  the  discoverer  of  the  Magdalena  district,  located 
this  old  time  mine.  Col.  Hutchason  was  in  the  Old  Placer  district  as  early  as  1848,  and 
at  one  time  owned  the  Candelaria  mine. 


26  NEW    MEXICO    MINES  AND   MINERALS. 

* 

exposing  the  rugged  character  of  the  syenite-porphyry:  hav- 
ing its  counterpart  in  the  Ortiz  peaks,  some  four  miles  to 
the  north. 

The  now  deserted  village  of  Dolores  stands  to  the  northeast 
from  the  Ortiz  mountains,  near  its  base. 

Gold,  silver,  lead,  copper  iron  and  zinc  are  found  in  this 
district. 

In  the  classification  of  the  mode  of  ocurrence  of  the  ores,, 
three  divisions  would  seem  proper  : 

(1)  Deposition  due  to  erosion,  placer  gravels. 

(2)  Deposition  due  to  descending  and  ascending  waters  and 
the  filling  in  of  fractured  zones  and  true  fissures,  which  carry 
gold. 

(3)  Deposition  due  to  contact  metamorphism,  from  which 
the  copper,  lead,  silver  and  zinc  ores  are  intimately  associated. 

In  the  first  of  these  divisions  the  placer  gold  has  its  origin 
in  the  universally  accepted  manner  ascribed  to  such  deposits: 
that  is,  through  disintegration  of  the  rock-complex  of  the 
second  classification,  as  above  given. 

Since  there  appears  to  be  two  distinct  features  which 
characterize  the  occurrence  of  the  gold  under  the  second 
division,  the  veins  are  divided  into  fractured  zones  and  true 
fissures.  The  first  of  these  has  no  banded  structure  and  the 
walls  are  undefined,  greatly  crushed  and  shattered.  In  the 
second  case  a  true  banded  appearance  is  recognized  while  the 
walls  are  definite  and  intact.  It  would  appear  from  a  close 
inspection  of  the  two  classes  of  veins  that  the  first  was  filled 
by  a  leaching  process  of  descending  waters;  some  of  the 
seams  and  pockets  have  proven  immensely  rich  in  gold.  But, 
in  following  this  shattered  zone  down,  the  values  grow  less  as 
the  crevices  grow  smaller.  Sulphides  usually  appear  from 
seventy-five  to  one  hundred  feet  below  the  surface.  Even- 
tually, the  fracture  becomes  so  small  at  increased  depth,  as 
to  disappear  altogether  and  the  vein  is  completely  lost  or  said 
to  have  "pinched  out."  These  crushed  and  shattered  min- 
eralized zones  are  by  far  the  most  numerous  of  any  types  of 
deposit  in  the  district.  The  relative  position  of  their  planes 
approaches  perpendicularity,  their  general  strike  is  nearly 
east  and  west. 

Under  the  true  fissure  class  of  veins  only  one  or  two  of  any 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS.  27 

consequence  have  been  noted.  The  most  prominent  of  this 
class  is  found  in  the  famous  Ortiz  mine.  This  vein  is  com- 
pletely encased  in  syenite-porphyry  and  has  a  banded  appear- 
ance. Ascending  waters  or  lateral  secretion  is  responsible 
for  the  mineralization  of  this  and  similar  lodes  of  the  district. 
Some  very  fine  specimens  of  leaf  and  wire  gold  have  been 
taken  from  the  various  properties.  Beautiful  specimens 
enclosed  in  calcite  have  been  found  in  the  Gold  Standard  mine. 

Deposition  under  the  third  and  last  division  is  the  most 
important  in  the  district  when  viewed  from  a  commercial 
standpoint.  Here  may  plainly  be  seen  the  effect  of  pneumat- 
olytic  action,  induced  by  the  porphyritic  magma,  which  was 
forced  upward  against  the  Carboniferous  limestones.  The 
writer  was  much  impressed  by  the  effects  wrought  in  the 
overlying  sedimentaries,  by  this  intrusive  eruptive,  during  a 
recent  visit  at  the  mines  of  the  Santa  Fe  Gold  and  Copper 
Company.  This  property  is,  by  far,  the  best  developed  of  any 
in  the  district;  the  workings  are  quite  extensive,  embracing 
several  miles  of  development.  The  ore  is  principally  of  a  low 
grade  chalcopyrite,  and  intimately  associated  with  garnet, 
lime  and  shales. 

Massive  limestones  in  some  places  have  been  converted  into 
garnet,  exceeding  one  hundred  feet  in  thickness,  in  some 
instances.  The  superficial  limestones  and  shales  at  the  copper 
mines  are  frequently  penetrated  by  andesite  dikes.  It  was 
observed  that  the  best  ore  bodies  were  found  at  or  just  above 
the  main  porphy  rite  contact  and  along  the  contact  planes  of  the 
andesite  dikes.  From  the  foregoing,  it  would  appear  that  the 
segregation  of  ores,  along  or  near  these  planes  of  contact,  is 
largely  if  not  wholly  due  to  the  action  of  aqueous,  acid  and 
gaseous  vapors  in  their  effort  to  escape  from  their  magmatic 
prison;  under  released  pressure  their  metallic  burden  was 
thus,  necessarily  dropped. 

At  the  Lincoln  Lucky  mine  the  deposition  of  ore,  no  doubt, 
was  similarly  induced  by  the  porphyrite  intrusive  beneath. 
Since  the  ore  occurs  in  limestone  along  a  shattered  zone  and 
not  in  direct  contact  with  the  porphyry,  this  view,  at  first, 
does  not  seem  well  taken.  Upon  closer  investigation  it  will 
be  found  that  cavities  in  the  limestone  have  been  mineralized, 
only  where  communication  with  the  igneous  member  existed. 


28  NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS. 

On  the  eastern  and  northeastern  slopes  of  the  Tuertos  are 
some  iron  properties  which  have  not  yet  been  fully  exploited ; 
the  Perry  group  being  the  most  prominent. 

Some  of  the  principal  lode  claims  are:  The  San  Lazarus, 
Gold  Standard,  McKinley,  Lincoln  Lucky,  Anaconda  group, 
Stockton  group,  Alto  group,  San  Miguel,  Gold  King  group, 
Hazelton  group,  Shamrock  group,  Lucas  mines,  New  Mexico 
group,  Good  Enough  groups  (San  Lazarus  gulch),  and  the  Old 
Reliable  (on  the  Ortiz  grant.) 

The  more  prominent  of  the  placer  properties  may  be  enu- 
merated as  the  Monte  Cristo  Mining  Company,  Santa  Secivel, 
Baird  Mining  Company,  Ltd.,  Morning  Glory  and  Gold  Dust, 
the  Red  Bank  and  Viola. 


CHAPTER  V. 


CERRILLOS  (Galisteo)  DISTRICT. 

Under  the  caption  of  Turquoise,  something  in  a  general  way 
as  well  as  special,  is  said  concerning  this  famous  mining 
district. 

From  a  historical  standpoint,  no  section  in  the  United 
States  is  possessed  of  so  much  interest.  The  profound 
ancient  workings  at  Mount  Chalchihuitl,  due  to  the  existence 
of  turquoise  in  that  locality,  seem  almost  incredible  that  the 
work  could  have  been  accomplished  with  the  crude  appliances 
of  the  stone  age,  and  yet,  such  was  the  case. 

Fragments  of  coiled  pottery,  stone  hammers,  lichen  covered 
rocks  and  trees  over  a  century  old  growing  on  the  old  dumps 
and  in  the  working  pits,  when  first  brought  to  the  notice  of 
American  explorers  over  fifty  years  ago  were  then  hoary  with 
age  and  prove  beyond  the  shadow  of  doubt  the  great  antiquity 
of  mining  in  this  region. 

This  celebrated  district  lies  on  the  north  side  of  the 
Atchison,  Topeka  &  Santa  Fe  Railway,  at  the  little  village  of 
Los  Cerrillos,  near  the  center  of  Santa  Fe  county. 

The  first  description  of  the  region  was  given  by  Prof.  W.  P. 
Blake,  who  visited  the  old  turquoise  workings  in  1858.  Prof. 
Blake's  article  was  published  during  the  same  year  in  the 
American  Journal  of  Science.  Other  distinguished  scientists 
and  writers  paid  visits  to  that  section,  prior  to  the  modern 
discovery  of  metallic  ores. 

It  was  in  the  year  1879  when  the  modern  prospector  drifted 
into  the  region  after  the  great  excitement  at  Leadville,  Colo- 
rado. The  discovery  of  sulphide  ores,  zinc,  lead  and  silver,, 
was  heralded  abroad  and  the  boom  started. 

Two  town  sites,  Bonanza  City  and  Carbonateville,  were 
staked  out  in  the  early  '80s.  and  a  tidal  wave  of  mining  craze 
swept  over  the  district. 

These  once  thriving  villages  are  now  scarcely  more  than 
piles  of  rubbish  and  fallen  walls.  It  was  in  the  old  hotel  at 


30  NEW    MEXICO    MINES  AND   MINERALS. 

Carbonateville,  some  of  the  walls  are  yet  standing,  where 
General  Lew  Wallace,  when  seeking  recreation  in  the  mining 
camp  also  read  some  of  the  proof  sheets  of  Ben  Hur. 

Beside  the  ancient  turquoise  mines,  there  exists  a  metal 
mine  which  was  worked  for  its  silver  and  lead,  and  is  almost 
as  old  as  the  Chalchihuitl  workings;  this  is  known  as  Mina  del 
Tierra.  In  this  mine  exists  the  only  real  evidence  of  ancient 
lode  mining  in  the  southwest;  it  antedates  the  first  work  done 
in  the  Ortiz  and  Santa  Rita  mines  by  at  least  a  century. 

The  old  working  consists  of  an  incline  shaft  of  150  feet  and 
connects  with  a  somewhat  vertical  shaft  of  about  100  feet  in 
depth.  Extensive  drifts  of  300  feet  connect  with  various 
chambers  or  stopes;  these  chambers  were  formed  by  stoping 
or  mining  out  the  richer  ore  bodies. 

The  full  extent  of  this  old  working  has  never  been  definitely 
determined;  since  the  lower  depths  are  covered  with  water 
which  would  have  to  be  pumped  out  to  fully  explore  the  mine. 
As  late  as  L870  the  remains  of  an  old  canoe  were  still  in 
evidence,  which  was  used  for  crossing  water  in  the  mine  or, 
as  a  carrier  for  conveying  the  waste  and  ore  to  the  main  shaft; 
from  this  latter  point  it  was  carried  to  the  surface  on  the 
backs  of  Indians  in  raw  hide  buckets,  or  "tanates." 

The  shaft  had  step-platforms  or  landings  every  twelve  or 
fourteen  feet  which  were  gained  by  climbing  a  notched  pole 
(chicken  ladder),  similar  to  what  some  of  the  Pueblo  Indians 
use  at  the  present  day.  Many  crude  and  curious  relics,  such 
as  stone  hammers  and  sledges,  fragments  of  pottery,  etc., 
have  been  taken  from  both  the  mine  and  the  dump. 

It  is  thought  that  the  Jesuits  had  this  work  performed  by 
Indian  slaves  prior  to  1680. 

The  labor  involved,  when  we  take  into  consideration  the 
crude  manner  of  doing  the  work;  is  something  tremendous. 
Throughout  this  district  are  a  number  of  [smaller  pits  and 
openings  which  are  thought  to  have  been  done  at  that  time, 
from  the  association  of  similar  crude  implements  found  about 
the  works. 

The  ore  from  this  mine  is  a  sulphide  of  lead  and  zinc, 
carrying  rather  high  values  in  silver.  Silver  was,  no  doubt, 
the  principal  metal  sought  and  utilized. 

A  smelting  plant  of  two  stacks,  one  for  lead  and  the  other 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS.  31 

for  copper,  of  50-tons  each,  was  erected  in  1902,  at  Los  Cerri- 
llos,  on  the  railroad,  but  was  never  operated  steadily.  The 
ores  of  the  district,  without  first  making  a  separation  of  the 
lead  from  the  zinc,  cannot  be  successfully  smelted  at  a  profit. 
The  Cash  Entry,  Grand  Central  and  Tom  Paine  mines  have 
been  more  extensively  developed  than  most  of  the  other 
properties,  and  are  credited  with  some  production. 

The  Golden  Eagle,  M.  &  L.,  J.  B.  Weaver,  Galena  Chief, 
Fairview,  Sucker  Boy,  Evelyn  group,  Astor  group,  Empire 
State,  Beta,  Little  Joe,  Sunnyside,  Whalen  group  and  Inger- 
soll  constitute  the  principal  claims. 

There  were  fully  one  thousand  locations  made  during  the 
primary  impulse  of  the  excitement. 

The  ores  of  the  district  are  heavy  sulphides  of  zinc  and  lead, 
carrying  some  silver  and  a  little  copper  and  gold.  The  region 
is  thoroughly  mineralized  and  on  the  west  is  traversed  by 
numerous  andesite  and  basalt  dikes. 

The  central  core  of  the  district  about  Grand  Central  moun- 
tain, is  an  augite-andesite  porphyry;  and  in  the  region  of  the 
turquoise  mines,  at  both  Chalchihuitl  and  Turquesa,  it  is 
much  altered  by  kaolinization. 

Immediately  east  of  the  augite-andesite  area,  embracing 
the  arroyo  of  San  Marcos,  the  porphyry  is  recognized  as  a 
hornblende-andesite.  Since  the  andesite  formation  embraces 
all  of  the  metal  mines  in  the  district,  it  is  attributed  as  being 
the  chief  carrier  of  the  metaliferous  values. 

This  mineralized  area  is  traversed  by  innumerable  veins 
and  veinlets  more  or  less  irregular  but  all  having  a  general 
strike  of  about  N.  30C  E. 

It  would  seem  that  the  cause  of  the  numerous  systems  of 
veins  and  veinlets  that  abound  in  the  district,  was  due  to  the 
cooling  of  the  andesitic  magma,  which  resulted  in  extensive 
checking  and  fracturing  in  adjusting  itself  to  the  changed 
condition. 

Escaping  gases  and  aqueous  vapors  in  their  effort  to  escape 
along  the  lines  of  least  resistance,  deposited  their  metallic 
burden  under  released  pressure.  In  addition  to  this  phenom- 
ena, circulating  waters  at  a  later  period  must  have  also  given 
aid  in  the  segregation  of  the  metallic  sulphides  along  these 
fractured  zones. 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS.  #5 

A  valuable  contribution  to  the  scientific  literature  on  the 
Cerrillos  district  is  "The  Geology  of  the  Cerrillos  Hills,"  by 
Prof.  D.  W.  Johnson,  formerly  of  the  University  of  New 
Mexico,  which  appeared  as  a  reprint  from  the  Columbia 
School  of  Mines  Quarterly,  daring  1903. 


CHAPTER  VI. 


CENTRAL  DISTRICT. 

This  district  lies  immediately  southeast  of  Pinos  Altos  and 
seven  miles  east  of  Silver  City.  Due  north  two  miles  is  the 
military  reservation  of  Fort  Bayard. 

Central  district  embraces  the  sub-districts  of  Hanover, 
Fierro,  Santa  Rita  and  other  outlying  points. 

Practically  contemporaneous  with  the  discovery  of  gold  at 
Pinos  Altos  this  district  sprang  into  existence;  the  copper 
mines  at  Santa  Rita,  however,  were  known  as  early  as  1800. 
Originally,  the  village  of  Central  was  called  Santa  Clara.  As 
early  as  September  20,  1869,  there  were  recorded  in  the 
Central  district  at  Fort  Bayard,  fifty-seven  mining  claims. 
Most  all  of  these  locations  were  made  at  Hanover,  Santa  Rita 
and  San  Jose;  only  a  few  were  made  in  the  vicinity  of  Fort 
Bayard. 

In  the  locality  of  Central  post  office,  and  more  especially 
farther  to  the  northwest,  the  country  is  somewhat  broken  and 
its  surface  is  more  or  less  covered  with  a  light  colored  sand 
rock.  Porphyry  dikes  have  shouldered  their  way  upward 
breaking  through  the  thin  covering  of  the  sedimentary  series. 
The  exposed  sedimentaries  are  of  Carboniferous  age.  The 
veins  are  contacts  and  fissures,  and  their  mineralization  is 
due  to  contact  metamorphism  and  pneumatolytic  action. 
Since  the  first  work  in  the  early  sixties  (barring  Santa  Rita, 
Hanover  and  Fierro),  that  portion  of  the  district  about  Central 
post  office  has  remained  quiet,  with  the  exception  of  an 
occasional  ripple  of  excitement  caused  by  some  find  of  minor 
importance. 

It  was  on  the  16th  day  of  June,  1903,  when  the  camp  was 
suddenly  revived  by  a  phenomenally  rich  strike  in  Gold  Gulch 
on  the  Pactolus  claim. 

The  discovery  was  made  by  two  miners,  Saunders  and 
Cornell,  practically  on  the  line  between  the  two  fractional 
claims  of  the  Pactolus  and  Owl.  These  were  old  claims,  having 


NEW    MEXICO   MINES   AND   MINERALS.  35 

been  located  a  number  of  years,  and  the  strike  was  a  very 
great  surprise  to  the  owners. 

As  usual,  excitement  ran  high,  and  the  adjacent  country 
was  relocated  for  quite  a  distance  in  all  directions  from  the 
point  of  the  discovery.  Several  new  companies  have  been 
formed  and  development  will  likely  uncover  other  ore  bodies. 

The  ore  is  of  a  very  refractory  nature  carrying  consider- 
able zinc;  in  appearance  it  is  quite  deceptive. 

By  far  the  most  noted  mine  in  the  Central  district,  and 
perhaps  in  the  United  States,  historically  considered,  is  the 
renowned  copper  mine  of  Santa  Rita. 

This  mine  was  discovered  by  an  Indian  in  the  latter  part  of 
the  eighteenth  century,  who  afterward  revealed  his  secret  in 
1800,  to  Lieutenant  Colonel  Manuel  Carrasco.  Colonel 
Carrasco  was  a  commandant  in  the  Spanish  army,  who  had 
charge  of  the  military  posts  at  that  time  throughout  certain 
portions  of  New  Mexico.  It  seems  that  Carrasco  made  no 
attempt  to  work  the  property  during  the  time  it  was  in  his 
possession.  A  wealthy  merchant,  Don  Francisco  Manuel 
Elguea,  of  Chihuahua,  purchased  the  property  in  1804  from 
Carrasco,  and  immediately  set  a  force  of  laborers  to  work 
developing  the  property.*  Absolute  title  was  not  really 
vested  in  the  Spanish  Colonel;  for  the  Indians  gave  him  per- 
mission to  work  the  mine  only  under  certain  conditions. 

Lieutenant  Pike  in  1807,  during  his  expedition  to  the 
Territory,  in  speaking  of  mining  says  :  "There  are  no  mines 
known  in  the  province,  except  one  of  copper,  situated  in  a 
mountain  on  the  west  side  of  the  Rio  del  Norte,  in  latitude  34°. 
It  is  worked  and  produces  20,000  mule  loads  of  copper 
annually.  It  contains  gold,  but  not  quite  sufficient  to  pay  for 
its  extraction/' 

There  can  be  little  doubt  that  the  mine  referred  to  by  Pike 
was  the  Santa  Rita  mine,  since  Don  Francisco,  the  merchant 
of  Chihuahua,  was  operating  the  property  at  that  time; 
although,  the  latitude  of  34°  would  be  too  far  north  to  cor- 
respond with  Santa  Rita. 

••"According  to  Prince's  history,  Carrasco  found  the  copper  of  such  fine  quality  that 
he  contracted  the  whole  production  to  the  royal  mint  for  coinage. 

The  metal  was  transported  principally  on  the  backs  of  pack  mules  from  the  mine  to 
the  City  of  Mexico. 

One  hundred  mules  carried  three  hundred  pounds  each  and  were  said  to  have  been 
kept  constantly  employed. 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES    AND   MINERALS.  37 

James  O.  Pattie,  a  trapper  at  that  time,  in  his  narrative 
concerning  the  property  says:  "The  mine  was  worked  by  a 
Spanish  superintendent,  Juan  Onis,  for  the  Spanish  owner, 
Francisco  Pablo  Lagera. 

Within  the  circumference  of  three  miles  there  is  a  mine  of 
copper,  gold  and  silver,  besides  a  cliff  of  lodestone.*  The 
silver  mine  is  not  worked,  not  being  so  profitable  as  either 
copper  or  gold  mines.  The  Indians  were  very  troublesome 
and  the  trappers  did  good  service  in  keeping  them  in  order, 
by  force  and  treaties." 

It  appears  that  Pattie's  Francisco  Pablo  Lagera  must  be 
the  same  person  that  Prince's  history  gives  as  Don  Francisco 
Manuel  Elguea,  the  Chihuahua  merchant. 

In  R.  W.  Raymond's  Report  on  the  Statistics  of  Mines  and 
Mining  for  the  year  1870,  page  403,  gives  the  name  of  Don 
Francisco  de  Alquea  as  being  the  person  who  purchased  the 
mine  from  Colonel  Carrasco.  Dr.  Raymond  gives  the  name 
of  the  mine  superintendent  at  that  time  as  Ori,  which 
corresponds  to  the  time  of  the  man  Onis  in  Pattie's  narrative. 

In  1809,  the  death  of  Don  Francisco  occurred;  the  property 
was  then  worked  under  lease  by  Juan  Onis  or  Ori,  through  a 
contract  by  Don  Francisco's  widow. 

After  working  the  property  several  years  Juan  Onis  was 
superseded  by  the  two  Pattie  brothers  who  leased  the 
property  a  number  of  years,  paying  $1,000  per  annum.  The 
elder  of  the  two  brothers  remained  at  the  mines  and 
established  a  ranch  on  the  Mimbres  a  few  miles  away  and 
prospered.  Finally  in  1827  the  elder  Pattie  concluded  to 
purchase  the  property  agreeing  to  pay  $30,000  in  gold 
therefor.  The  money  was  entrusted  to  a  pretended  Spanish 
agent  who  claimed  to  represent  the  owner,  and  instead  of 
turning  over  the  money  as  was  expected,  nothing  was  ever 
lizard  of  this  impostor  again.  The  rascally  trick  of  the 
pretended  agent  virtually  ruined  Pattie  financially. 

It  seems  that  the  widow  of  Don  Francisco  disposed  of  the 
mines  about  the  year  1822;  the  purchaser,  in  1826,  was 
exiled  as  a  Spaniard  and  the  property  passed  into  the  hands 
of  Robert  McKnight,  who  held  it  from  1826  to  1834.  It  is  said 

*Evidently  the  iron  deposits  at  Fierro,  now  being  worked  by  the  Colorado  Fuel  & 
Iron  Company. 


38  NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS. 

that  McKnight  realized  a  considerable  profit  during  the  eight 
years  he  had  possession. 

On  account  of  hostilities  of  the  Apaches,  the  mine  was 
abandoned  for  a  few  years.  About  1840,  Siqueiros  took 
possession  and  worked  the  property  continuously  until  1860. 
During  the  year  1860,  Sweet  and  La  Coste  purchased  the  mine 
and  worked  it  up  to  the  time  of  the  Confederate  invasion  in 
1862,  when  all  of  the  mines  in  the  Territory  closed. 

During  the  interval  between  1862  and  1870,  Sweet  and  La 
Coste  interested  two  other  persons  having  the  names  of 
Brand  and  Fresh.  This  quartette  under  the  name  of  Sweet, 
La  Coste,  Brand  and  Fresh,  employed  a  number  of  Mexicans 
from  Chihuahua,  paying  them  $2.00  per  day  in  Mexican  coin. 
They  operated  a  small  Mexican  blast  furnace  having  a  capacity 
of  about  2,000  pounds  of  copper  per  month.  This  metallic 
copper  was  freighted  by  wagon  to  Sheridan,  the  terminus  of 
the  Kansas  Pacific  railway;  from  that  point  it  was  sent  to  the 
eastern  markets. 

The  present  ownership  of  this  historical  mine  is  the  Santa 
Rita  Mining  Company,  which  company  purchased  the  prop- 
erty from  J.  Parker  Whitney  in  May,  1899.  Just  how  long 
Whitney  held  the  property  and  from  whom  he  purchased,  the 
writer  was  unable  to  ascertain. 

The  estimated  production  of  the  Santa  Rita  property  from 
the  time  of  its  discovery  to  January  1,  1904,  is  approximately 
80,000,000  pounds  of  metallic  copper. 

The  Santa  Rita  mines  occupy  a  depression  or  basin,  resem- 
bling a  vast  ancient  crater.  At  the  south  side  of  the  basin, 
Whitewater  (Copper  mine)  creek  cuts  through  the  rim  and 
affords  a  drain  to  the  depression. 

The  rock  in  which  the  principal  copper  values  lie  is  a 
feldspathic  porphyry,  which  has  reached  a  rather  advanced 
stage  of  kaolinization;  the  state  of  decomposition  of  this 
porphyry  is  more  marked  in  some  places  than  in  others. 

It  seems  that  the  prophyry  on  cooling,  or  perhaps  from 
extraenous  forces,  has  become  checked  and  cracked  in  every 
conceivable  direction.  It  is  in  these  openings  in  which  the  bulk 
of  the  copper  value  is  deposited.  On  account  of  the  enormous 
quantities  of  metallic  (native)  copper  disseminated  in  and 
through  this  felsite  porphyry,  we  are  led  to  believe  that 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES    AND    MINERALS.  W 

secondary  enricliment  has  taken  place.  Chalcocite  is  dis- 
cernable  in  the  felsite  rocks  and  it  is  from  this  mineral  and 
also  perhaps,  from  chalcopyrite,  that  the  native  copper  chiefly 
owes  its  origin.  Surface  waters  appear  to  have  been  the 
sole  carrier  of  the  metalliferous  values,  which  were  arrested 
during  descending  infiltration.  Most  all  of  the  associated 
ores  of  copper  are  found  in  the  camp;  cuprite,  however,  seems 
to  be  quite  plentiful,  incrusting  the  native  copper. 

The  principal  part  of  the  Santa  Rita  camp  is  owned  by  the 
Santa  Rita  Mining  Company;  the  greater  part  of  the  mining- 
is  done  by  a  system  of  leasing. 

Many  interesting  traditions  are  interwoven  in  the  en- 
chanted name  "Santa  Rita.'' 

To  the  east  of  the  Santa  Rita  basin  on  the  rim  is  a  peculiar 
isolated  column  of  stone  which  rises  to  a  considerable  height, 
and  may  be  seen  from  certain  directions  for  long  distances. 
By  a  little  imagination  the  stone  resembles  a  woman  kneeling, 
in  the  attitude  of  prayer;  this  monolith  is  known  as  the 
"kneeling  nun.''  Superstition  has  clothed  this  silent  sentry 
of  stone  in  the  following  abbreviated  legend : 

"In  the  early  days  of  the  Spanish  conquest  of  Mexico,  upon 
the  mountain  there  stood  a  mission  or  cloister,  wherein  dwelt 
monks  and  nuns:  and  one  of  the  latter,  a  Sister  Rita,  a  nun 
professed,  who  had  broken  her  vows,  was  turned  to  the  stone 
or  monolith  now  standing  on  its  brow." 

The  old  Spanish  prison  in  which  the  peons  or  slaves  were 
confined  for  disobedience  in  working  the  mines,  is  still 
standing. 

Two  of  the  adobe  forts  known  as  the  "Martello"'  towers,  are 
still  standing  and  in  a  fairly  good  state  of  preservation. 
These  towers  are  circular;  the  inside  diameter  is  twelve  feet 
with  an  equal  height,  and  the  walls  are  three  feet  thick. 
There  were  four  of  these  originally;  one  standing  at  each 
corner  of  the  prison  yard,  with  port  holes  near  the  top.  These 
towers  proved  impregnable  against  the  assaults  of  the  Apache 
Indians,  when  the  mines  were  being  operated  in  the  early 
days. 

Passing  across  the  low  divide  from  the  Santa  Rita,  in 
going  west,  the  Hanover  gulch  is  encountered.  The  postomces 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS.  41 

of  Hanover  and  Fierro  lie  in  the  gulch;  the  latter  lying  about 
two  miles  north  of  the  former. 

Near  Fierro  is  the  celebrated  Hanover  mine;  exceeded  in 
production  and  renown,  only  by  that  of  Santa  Rita.  This 
mine  was,  perhaps,  known  to  the  Spaniards  about  1804;  but 
its  true  discovery  was  made  by  a  German,  from  Hanover,  in 
the  early  or  middle  fifties.  According  to  Dr.  R.  W.  Raymond, 
in  the  Statistics  of  Mines  and  Mining  of  1870,  this  property 
had  a  greater  production  when  in  operation,  than  the  Santa 
Rita  mine  and  had  been  more  or  less  a  producer  since  1858. 
Between  1858  and  1861  it  is  credited  with  a  production  of 
1,000,000  pounds  of  metallic  copper.  The  cost  of  mining  and 
smelting  this  copper  was  ten  cents  per  pound.  The  smelting 
of  the  ore  was  done  in  a  high  blastfurnace,  and  the  metal  was 
refined  in  a  reverberatory  furnace. 

Before  the  war  of  the  rebellion,  the  copper  was  run  into 
pigs  weighing  from  100  pounds  to  120  pounds  and  hauled  by 
mule  teams,  via  Mesilla  to  the  Texan  port  of  Lavacca  at  a  cost 
of  six  cents  per  pound.  From  thence  it  went  by  schooners 
to  the  City  of  New  York,  for  $5.00  per  ton. 

At  the  time  of  the  Confederate  invasion,  work  on  the  mine 
suddenly  stopped;  all  the  machinery  and  equipments,  includ- 
ing i*7,000  pounds  of  copper,  were  taken  to  San  Antonio, 
Texas  and  confiscated  by  the  southern  troops.  After  the 
period  of  invasion,  the  mine  passed  into  a  state  of  "innocuous 
desuetude,''  for  a  number  of  years. 

T.  B.  Catron,  of  Santa  Fe,  finally  became  the  possessor, 
and  from  him  it  passed  to  C.  F.  Grayson  and  company,  of 
Silver  City.  This  latter  company  sold  the  property  to  Phelps, 
Dodge  and  Company,  in  1902,  the  owner  at  the  present  time. 

Following  the  Santa  Rita  range  to  the  southwest  about 
three  miles  from  the  Santa  Rita  mines  the  old  San  Jose 
copper  mines  are  reached. 

Malachite  and  azurite  are  the  chief  ores  of  this  property,  and 
are  associated  with  a  quartz  gangue.  The  strike  of  the  veins 
here  is  about  N.  "20  E.  cutting  a  porphy ritic  formation.  Many 
years  ago  these  mines  w7ere  said  to  have  been  profitably 
worked;  they  were  abandoned  prior  to  1870,  but  during  1902 
some  production  was  reported. 

Central  district  writh  its  numerous  sub-districts  and  camps 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS.  43 

is  by  far  the  most  important  mining  section  in  New  Mexico. 
Chiefly  to  this  district  is  due  the  credit  of  placing  Grant 
county  at  the  head  of  the  mineral  producing  counties  of  the 
Territory. 

Among  the  important  minerals  and  ores  found  in  this 
section  are  copper,  iron,  zinc,  lead,  gold  and  silver.  No  coal 
has  been  found  in  Grant  county. 

It  is  not  within  the  sphere  of  this  little  volume  to  even 
attempt  a  description  or  discussion  of  the  mines  in  this 
district.  The  fact,  however,  should  not  be  overlooked  that 
nearly  three  fourths  of  the  metallic  wealth  of  New  Mexico, 
for  1902,  was  from  Grant  county — the  greater  part  of  which 
came  from  the  Central  mining  district. 

Prominent  among  the  various  properties  at  Fierro  are  the 
Anson  S.  and  Iron  Head,  the  two  latter  are  controlled  by  the 
Colorado  Fuel  &  Iron  Company;  the  Copper  Queen,  Modoc 
and  Hanover  (the  latter  mine  is  described  above),  owned  by 
the  Phelps-Dodge  people;  the  Emma,  Hanover  No.  2,  Nora, 
Dude,  Holy  Moses  group,  and  a  great  many  others. 

The  Santa  Rita  Mining  Company  controls  the  principal  pro- 
ducing claims  of  the  Santa  Rita  basin.  The  Log  Cabin  and 
Belmont  were  producers  from  that  section  in  1902;  these 
claims  are  chiefly  lead  properties.  Down  Whitewater  creek 
about  a  mile  is  the  Wild  Cat  property,  which  is  familiar  to  the 
district. 

Lying  east  of  the  post  office  of  Hanover,  about  half  a  mile  is 
the  celebrated  zinc  mine  known  as  the  Thunderbolt.  Much 
sulphide  and  carbonate  ore  has  been  shipped  from  this  prop- 
erty of  late  years  to  Mineral  Point,  Wisconsin,  for  treatment. 
In  the  vicinity  of  this  post  office  are  the  Copper  Queen, 
Minnie  B.,  Philadelphia,  Copper  Kettle,  Copper  George,  Pea- 
cock and  the  Hanover  Iron  mine. 

At  the  post  office  of  Central,  besides  the  claims  already 
mentioned  in  the  new  district  at  Gold  gulch,  a  number  of 
companies  are  doing  development  work.  The  St.  Louis  Gold 
Gulch  Company  was  organized  in  September,  1903,  and  own 
the  Lucky  Bill  and  Dutch  Uncle  claims. 

The  most  noted  property  in  the  vicinity  of  Central  post 
office  is  the  Texas.  This  property  has  produced  considerable 
in  the  past;  the  ore  is  a  sulphide  carrying  heavy  values  in 


44  NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS. 

silver  with  a  little  gold.  The  vein  is  a  contact  between  slate, 
shale  and  porphyry.  The  Missouri,  Jasper  and  Helene  are 
producing  properties  and  are  classed  as  producers  in  1902. 

Lone  Mountain  District. 

This  district  is  properly  a  sub-district  of  Central,  it  lies 
south  and  west  of  Central  post  office  between  four  and  five 
miles.  There  are  four  patented  properties;  it  is  a  silver  camp. 
Very  little,  if  anything,  is  doing  in  the  camp  at  this  date. 

Lone  Mountain  district  was  discovered  in  1871  by  Frank 
Bisbee  (from  whose  name  Bisbee,  Arizona,  was  christened) 
and  Jack  Frost.  A  10-stamp  mill  was  immediately  erected 
and  operated  on  the  rich  silver  ores  there  for  about  two  years, 
before  closing  down  indefinitely. 

Mimbres  District. 

This  district  lies  a  few  miles  to  the  northeast  of  Santa  Rita 
in  Grant  county,  and  embraces  the  once  lively  camp  of 
Georgetown,  extending  beyond  into  the  Mimbres  valley. 

The  discovery  of  silver  here  dates  back  to  the  year  1866; 
the  pioneers  were  Messrs.  Butine  and  Streeter,  George 
Duncan  and  Andy  Johnson  and  a  few  others.  Afterward 
came  D.  C.  Casey,  Jas.  Fresh,  E.  Meeks,  Lige  Wicks,  S.  S. 
Brannon,  David  Smith,  Alex.  McGregor  and  Charles  Nicolai. 

It  was  several  years  later  before  any  work  was  attempted; 
the  first  development  was  on  the  McNulty  location,  done  by 
Jas.  Fresh  and  E.  Meeks. 

In  1873  it  began  to  dawn  upon  those  who  had  locations  that 
the  camp  was  one  of  considerable  merit.  A  few  years  later 
witnessed  a  veritable  boom  and  the  greatest  excitement  pre- 
vailed. The  ore  from  which  most  of  the  values  came  was 
cerargyrite  (horn  silver)  found  in  a  greenish  slate  or  shale 
contact  with  the  overlying  carboniferous  limestones. 

The  plane  of  contact  approached  horizontality  and  the 
deposits  were  practically  of  blanket  form. 

Occasionally  sulphides  and  chlorides  of  silver  are  found, 
sparingly  intermingled  with  galena;  notably  among  this  class 
of  mines  is  the  Jackson  group.  Vanadinite  is  found  in  con- 
siderable quantities  in  several  of  the  mines,  as  well  as  some 
ruby  silver. 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS.  45 

The  present  owner  of  the  Quien  Sabe  is  G.  B.  Sibole:  \V. 
H.  Bentz  owns  the  Silver  Bell  group.  The  Commercial  mine 
was  very  prominent  as  a  producer  in  the  early  days. 

In  another  part  of  the  district  is  the  Naiad  Queen  group,  a 
patented  property,  embracing  199.47  acres,  and  belonging  to 
the  Mimbres  Consolidated  Mining  Company,  and  was  the 
most  prominent  property  in  the  district.  Many  other  prop- 
erties with  a  record  of  production,  exist  in  the  district, 
though  now  idle. 

On  entering  Georgetown  late  in  the  afternoon  on  April  23. 
1903,  the  writer  and  his  companion  were  much  depressed  by 
the  awful  stillness  that  pervaded  the  premises.  In  fact, 
absolutely  nothing  was  found  doing,  the  streets  were  depop- 
ulated and  grown  up  in  weeds.  Long  rows  of  buildings 
casting  their  ghostly  shadows  by  the  lingering  sun,  impressed 
us  with  a  feeling  of  indescribable  fear  and  horror.  The  once 
bustling  moving  throng  of  sturdy  prospectors  and  miners  who 
had  "struck  it  rich,"  the  incessant  clattering  of  the  stamps  in 
the  silver  mills  and  the  sharp  crack  of  the  mule  driver's  whip, 
all  have  been  forever  silenced  in  the  brief  span  of  a  decade, 
by  the  magic  touch  of  time.  Oh,  what  utter  desolation!  The 
flitting  picture  before  us  is  a  realistic  view  through  the 
kinematoscope  of  the  past — it  is  the  passing  of  a  western 
mining  camp.  At  the  end  of  these  series  of  depressing  views, 
we  behold  towering  above  the  wreckage  and  piles  of  waste  a 
beautiful  monument  of  solid  silver,  glinting  in  the  setting 
sun,  representing  a  production  of  $3,500,000  to  the  credit  of 
the  camp. 

Carpenter  District. 

Near  the  south  end  and  on  the  west  slope  of  the  rugged 
Mimbres  range  of  mountains,  in  Grant  county,  is  an  isolated 
mining  district  of  which  but  little  is  known  to  the  outside 
world.  This  section  is  covered  with  a  dense  pine  forest  and 
the  topography  is  so  broken  that  prospectors  usually  find  it- 
convenient  to  shun,  in  their  still  hunt  for  fortune. 

The  deposits  are  principally  contacts  between  limestone  and 
porphyry,  carrying  the  sulphides  and  carbonates  of  zinc  and 
lead. 

It  is  surmised  by  the  writer  that  the  district  is  destined  to 


46  NEW   MEXICO   MINES  AND   MINERALS. 

become  one  of  the  great  zinc  rields  of  New  Mexico,  when 
properly  exploited. 

The  Grand  Central  group  appears  to  have  merit  in  its 
deposits  of  smith  sonite,  as  well  as  the  Potosi  group,  which 
carries  sphalerite  along  with  smithsonite.  The  Beanie  lode 
is  a  lead  silver  proposition  and  contains  but  little  zinc. 


CHAPTER  VII. 


PINOS  ALTOS  DISTRICT. 

The  early  history  of  this  district  is  very  similar  in  all 
respects  to  that  of  others  in  the  west. 

Not  only  had  the  pioneer  to  overcome  vast  distances  and 
endure  intense  suffering,  due  to  thirst,  heat,  hunger  and  cold, 
in  pushing  his  journey  into  an  unknown  region;  but,  had  to  be 
constantly  on  the  alert,  since  he  was  hunted  in  the  day  and 
haunted  at  night  by  the  savage  hordes  which  infested  the 
land. 

Next  to  the  discovery  of  gold  at  Dolores  and  Tuerto,  of  the 
Old  and  New  Placers  in  Santa  Fe  county,  came  the  Pinos 
Altos  tinds,  now  in  Grant  county. 

Gold  was  discovered*  at  Pinos  Altos  in  May,  1860,  by  a 
party  of  '49ers,  who  drifted  into  the  country  from  California. 
Three  persons  composed  the  party,  Col.  Snively,  Birch  and 
Hicks:  Snively  was  the  recognized  leader.  The  discovery  was 
made  by  Birch, 'while  taking  a  drink  out  of  Bear  gulch  just 
above  its  junction  with  Little  Cherry,  near  the  Mountain  Key 
mill.  This  place  wras  called  Birchville,  in  honor  of  the 
discoverer.  It  is  claimed  by  some  that  the  first  find  was  in 
Rich  gulch,  near  the  present  site  of  Pinos  Altos;  be  this  as  it 
may  it  was  Snively 's  party  that  made  the  discovery. 

By  June,  quite  a  number  of  prospectors  had  gathered  to 
the  new  Eldorado  and  were  busily  engaged  in  washing  out 
gold.  The  gold  fever  became  so  contagious  that  within  an 
incredibly  short  time  it  had  infected  a  number  of  people  in 
Texas,  California,  Sonora,  Chihuahua  and  Missouri;  in 
December  fully  1,500  persons  were  at  the  diggings. 

From  $10  to  $15  per  day,  per  man,  was  realized  in  the 
gulches  in  the  immediate  vicinity  of  the  original  finds. 

Mr.  Thomas    Mastin  in  December,  1860,   discovered  and 

*It  is  claimed  that  there  are  records  among  the  archives  of  the  Mexican  government 
;n  the  City  of  Chihuahua  which  speak  of  gold  being  found  in  the  Pinos  Altos  mountains 
in  the  beginning  of  the  19th  century.  The  discovery  is  said  to  have  been  made  by  Gen. 
Pedro  Almendares,  one  of  the  commandants  of  the  Mexican  outpost  at  Santa  Rita.  If 
true,  no  practical  results  came  from  it. 


48  NEW    MEXICO   MINES  AND   MINERALS. 

located  the  first  quartz  lode.  This  lode  is  the  present  Pacific- 
mine  and  crosses  the  "continental  divide,"  where  the  waters 
come  to  the  "parting  of  the  ways."  This  noted  property  was 
bought  by  Virgil  Mastin,  a  brother,  in  the  following  spring. 

A  few  lode  claims  were  located  in  1861;  among  them  was  the 
Lock  vein,  since  made  famous  as  a  gold  producer  under  the 
name  of  Mountain  Key. 

During  the  winter  and  spring  of  1861,  the  Apache  Indians 
constantly  menaced  the  life  and  property  of  the  miners.  In 
the  fall,  on  September  27th,  a  severe  engagement  took  place 
between  the  miners  and  a  band  of  500  Indians,  under  the 
famous  Apache  leaders,  Mangas  Coloradas  and  Cochise.  The 
miners  were  ultimately  victorious,  but  Captain  Thomas 
Mastin,  who  commanded  a  company  of  volunteers  lost  his  life, 
and  several  others,  during  the  bloody  conflict. 

After  this  engagement  most  of  the  people  through  fear, 
quit  the  country,  only  a  few  of  the  more  reckless  remained 
behind;  Virgil  Mastin  being  one  of  the  number  who  refused 
to  leave,  in  order  to  avenge  the  death  of  his  brother,  should  an 
opportunity  be  presented.  Several  years  later  Virgil  Mastin 
was  ambushed  and  killed  near  the  Silver  Cell  mine. 

But  little  work  was  done  during  1861-4*,  as  most  all  the 
Americans  had  abandoned  the  camp. 

During  this  interval  of  abandonment,  the  Mexicans  changed 
the  name  from  Birchville  to  Pinos  Altos.  Owing  to  the  forest 
of  "tall  pines"  which  existed  there  at  that  time  the  name 
Pinos  Altos  was  very  suggestive  and  the  latter  appellation  has 
clung  to  the  place  ever  since. 

About  the  close  of  1864  the  camp  was  attaining  its  former 
prestige  by  an  influx  of  American  miners  and  mining  was 
again  on  the  eve  of  prosperity  when  another  raid  was  made  by 
the  Apaches,  who  succeeded  in  terrifying  the  inhabitants  and 
driving  off  all  their  cattle  and  horses. 

Nothing  further  was  attempced  in  mining  until  1866,  when 
the  Pinos  Altos  Mining  Company  was  organized  and  char- 
tered under  the  laws  of  New  Mexico.  The  members  of  the 
organization  were  Virgil  Mastin,  J.  Edgar  Griggs,  S.  J.  Jones, 
Joseph  Reynolds  and  J.  Amberg. 

*The  governor  in  his  report  of  1861-2,  alludes  to  the  fact  that  30  gold  lodes  at  Pinos 
Altos  were  working,  employing  300  men,  and  the  ore  was  worth  from  $40  to  $350per  ton. 


Xi:\V    MEXICO   MINES  AND   MINERALS.  -11) 

By  July,  1H67,  this  company  had  completed  a  15-stamp 
mill  which  was  the  second  quartz  mill  erected  in  the  Territory; 
this  mill  was  preceded  only  about  two  months  by  the  one  at 
the  old  Ortiz  mine,  in  Santa  Fe  county. 

Other  mills  followed  at  short  intervals  afterward  and  during 
the  years  1868-9,  great  activity  was  witnessed  throughout  the 
whole  district. 

The  records  show  that  by  September  19th,  1869,  there  were 
located  and  recorded  213  quartz  lodes,  beside  those  of  the 
placer  claims. 

In  1872,  Skillicorn  and  company  built  and  put  in  operation 
the  well  known  Mud  Turtle  mill,  so  called  from  the  fact  that 
a  large  mudturtle  had  been  captured  at  that  place. 

During  the  year  1883  Peter  Wagner  built  a  5-stamp  mill  and 
Place  and  Johnson  also  put  up  a  10-stamp,  during  the  same 
year.  This  latter  mill  was  not  a  success  on  account  of  having 
to  deal  with  refractory  ores. 

The  mill  that  Wagner  built  was  provided  with  a  concen- 
trator, and  to  him  belongs  the  first  honors  of  being  able  to 
successfully  handle  refractory  ores  in  NewT  Mexico.  To 
Wagner  is  due  the  credit  of  building  the  first  concentrator  for 
the  concentration  of  base  ores  in  the  Territory. 

In  1887  Lunger  and  company  discovered  high  grade  ore  in 
the  Mountain  Key  mine;  which  was  shortly  afterward  pur- 
chased by  General  Boyle.  Boyle  organized  a  company  and 
erected  a  20-stamp  mill  and  shortly  afterward  took  out 
$500,000.  This  property  laid  idle  about  a  decade  until  the 
owner  W.  C.  Chandler,  in  April,  1903,  began  operations  and 
the  property  has  been  producing  ever  since. 

Among  the  celebrated  properties  of  the  Pinos  Altos  district, 
the  famous  Silver  Cell  mine  deserves  especial  mention. 

This  property  lies  southeast  of  Pinos  Altos  about  two  miles, 
and  such  high  grade  silver  in  a  gold  camp  is  looked  upon  as 
an  anomaly. 

The  discovery  was  made  on  June  18,  1891,  by  the  three 
Dimmick  brothers,  who  had  emigrated  from  Pennsylvania 
and  taken  up  a  homestead  in  the  vicinity  of  their  future  find. 

One  of  the  brothers  on  driving  up  the  cows  which  were 
grazing  in  the  adjacent  hills,  incidentally  picked  up  a  stone, 
as  he  supposed,  and  tossed  it  at  one  of  the  animals  that  had 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS.  51 

fallen  out  of  line.     Just  as  the  missile  passed  from  his  hand 
his  attention  was  attracted  by  its  heft. 

Following  the  supposed  stone  in  the  direction  it  had  gone 
and  on  picking  it  up,  to  his  great  astonishment,  it  was  found 
to  be  solid  silver.  Reporting  and  exhibiting  his  find  to  his 
two  brothers,  whereupon  a  search  was  immediately  inau- 
gurated by  the  trio,  resulting  in  the  discovery  of  the  lode. 

The  discovery  transformed  the  business  of  the  three 
brothers  from  that  of  dairying  to  mining.  Systematic 
development  was  prosecuted  and  up  to  January  1,  1903,  the 
property  had  produced  $100,000. 

In  March,  1903,  the  property  passed  into  the  hands  of 
the  Shamrock  Gold  and  Silver  Company.  The  present  com- 
pany are  finding  free  silver  ore  at  a  depth  of  400  feet. 

A  smelting  plant  has  been  installed  on  the  property,  which 
treats  not  only  the  ores  from  the  Silver  Cell,  but  from  the 
surrounding  camps  of  Pinos  Altos,  Central,  Hanover  and 
Santa  Rita. 

The  Silver  Cell  lode  seems  to  be  that  of  a  green  stone  or 
diorite  dike,  intruded  into  the  granites.  The  minerals  are 
native  silver,  argentite  and  cerargy rite;  very  little,  if  any  gold 
is  present. 

On  the  west  side  of  the  mountains  from  Pinos  Altos  about 
two  and  one-half  miles  is  located  the  Cleveland  group  of  five 
claims. 

This  is  among  the  oldest  exploited  properties  in  the  district. 
It  is  claimed  that  J.  Amberg,  a  German  metallurgist,  did 
considerable  work  on  this  property,  prior  to  the  time  that  he 
became  interested  in  the  organization  of  the  Pinos  Altos 
Mining  Company,  in  1866. 

The  formations  seem  to  be  a  series  of  syenite  and  quartz- 
porphyries,  associated  with  some  intrusives  of  diorite,  with 
andesite  coverings. 

The  general  trend  of  the  ore  bodies  is  to  the  northeast  and 
the  dip  averages  about  30°  toward  the  northwest.  Heavy 
sulphides  of  copper,  iron,  zinc  and  lead,  carrying  values  in 
both  gold  and  silver,  is  the  character  of  the  ore.  Zinc-blende 
always  shows  more  prominently  at  increased  depth  through- 
out the  district. 

Several  properties  which  are  associated  with  the  history  of 


52  NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS. 

the  district  have  extensive  development,  and  it  is  not  within 
the  scope  of  this  volume  to  attempt  separate  descriptions  of 
each. 

The  basal  core  of  the  Pinos  Altos  district,  is  reddish  and 
grey  colored  granite  and  gneiss  of  Cambrian  age,  penetrated 
by  diorite-porphyry  dikes;  the  veins,  are  thus  fissures  in  the 
main. 

The  placer  gold  evidently  resulted  from  the  disintegration 
of  the  quartz  seams  and  porphyritic  dikes  which  traverse  the 
district,  and  could  not  have  been  transported  any  appreciable 
distance. 

Moreover,  the  form  of  the  gold  and  the  altitude  at  which  it 
is  found  in  the  mountain  gulches  corroborate  this  statement. 

The  fineness  of  the  placer  gold  is  775.  Most  of  the  placer 
mining  is  done  in  a  small  way  by  the  Mexicans.  Panning, 
dry  washing  and  the  use  of  the  arrastra  are  the  methods 
employed.  Of  the  placer  claims  the  Log  Cabin  and  Adobe 
are  the  most  important. 

Among  the  most  prominent  lode  claims,  beside  those  here- 
inbefore mentioned  are  the  Pacific  Extension,  Atlantic,  Deep 
Down,  Aztec,  Manhattan,  Mammoth,  Gopher,  Arizona,  Nogal, 
Blue  Horse,  Gold  Bell,  Alaska,  Tom  Boy,  Dover,  Ribbon, 
Nugget,  St.  Louis,  Comstock,  Maud  S.,  San  Pablo,  Hards- 
crabble,  Golcondia,  Hilltop  group,  Little  Pacific,  Golden  Giant, 
Esperanza  and  Pride-of -the- West. 

The  production  of  the  Pinos  Altos  district  from  the  time  of 
its  discovery  to  January  1,  1904,  will  approximate  $4,700,000. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 


SILVER  OR  CHLORIDE  FLAT  (Silver  City)  DISTRICT. 

Adjoining  the  town  of  Silver  City  on  the  west  is  claimed  to 
be  the  place  where  silver  was  first  mined*  in  New  Mexico.  In 
this  particular  locality  very  little  silver  was  taken  out,  when 
compared  to  what  was  produced  at  Silver  or  Chloride  Flat. 
Owing  to  the  phenomenal  finds  of  silver  here,  which  point  is 
about  one  and  one-half  miles  from  town,  Silver  City  received 
its  name. 

Approximately,  $3,250,000  in  silver  were  taken  from  this 
circumscribed  area  in  a  comparatively  short  time. 

The  discoverers  of  Silver  or  Chloride  Flat  were  Jim 
and  John  Bullardt,  J.  R.  Johnson,  John  Swishelm  and  others, 
in  the  spring  of  1*71. 

A  number  of  mills,  the  Wisconsin  company,  M.  W.  Bremen, 
Tennessee  Mining  and  Milling  Company,  Cibola  Milling  Com- 
pany and  the  Carrasco  smelter,  were  in  operation  at  Silver 
City  during  the  active  days  of  the  district. 

Between  six  and  seven  miles  further  to  the  northwest  in 
the  same  mining  region  is  Camp  Fleming,  named  in  honor  of 
J.  W.  Fleming,  of  Silver  City,  who  is  one  of  the  pioneer 
miners,  and  was  one  of  the  principal  operators  in  that  section 
at  that  time.  The  discovery  of  Silver  in  Camp  Fleming  was 
due  to  the  finding  of  a  piece  of  very  rich  float  by  Dutch  Henry 
and  partner,  in  1882.  The  production  of  this  camp  is  not 
known,  but  was  considerable. 

The  ores  of  the  district  occur  in  the  same  limestone  belt 
as  Chloride  Flat,  along  the  contact.  Argentite  and  cerar- 
gyrite  were  the  two  principal  classes  of  silver  ores. 

*The  first  modern  silver  mining  was  done  here;  the  ancient  mining  at  Minadel  Ti> </•/•</ 
at  Los  Cerrillos  is  to  be  excepted  in  this  statement. 

•John  Bullard  was  killed  the  following  winter  by  an  Apache  Indian  who  wasmortally 
wounded  in  the  back,  and  who  leveled  a  pistol  in  both  hands,  lying  on  his  belly,  shot 
Bullard  through  the  heart. 

In  this  skirmish  Bullard  had  emptied  his  gun  and  pistols,  when  he  beheld  the  Indian 
in  the  act  of  firing:  calling  to  a  companion,  "shoot  that  Indian  quick."  His  companion's 
gun  snapped  and  did  not  fire  and  the  next  instant  Bullard  fell  forward  on  his  face,  dead. 

Immediately  afterward  the  Indian  rolled  over  and  expired.  Bullards  peak,  west  of 
Silver  City,  was  named  after  the  hero. 


54  NEW    MEXICO   MINES   AND    MINERALS. 

The  region  about  Camp  Fleming  is  sometimes  spoken  of  as 
Bear  mountain;  it  is  now  deserted.  The  Granite  Hill  group 
is  a:)  Bear  mountain. 

White  Signal  (Cow  Spring)  District. 

This  section  lies  a  few  miles  southeast  of  the  Burro  moun- 
tain district  and  seems  to  possess  some  merit  in  becoming  a 
producer  of  turquoise,  as  well  as  gold,  silver,  lead  and  cop- 
per. 

None  of  the  properties  are  very  extensively  developed; 
notwithstanding  the  excellent  surface  showings. 

The  formation  is  much  the  same  in  nature  as  that  in  the 
Burro  mountain  district. 

The  principal  properties  are  the  Coplen  group  of  four 
claims,  J.  W.  Carter  mine,  and  the  locations  owned,  five 
claims,  by  the  Michigan-New  Mexico  Copper  Company. 

The  district  of  White  Signal  received  its  name  from  a  large 
white  porphyry  rock  which  is  conspicuous  in  that  region. 

Bullard's  Peak  (Black  Hawk)  District. 

This  district  is  situated  in  the  north  end  of  the  Burro 
mountains  and  is  the  north  extension  of  the  Burro  district. 

It  received  its  name  from  John  Bullard  who  was  killed  in 
that  region  in  1871,  by  the  Apache  Indians. 

A  negro  by  the  name  of  Bowman,  or  better  known  to  the 
old  timers  as  "Cherokee  Jim,"  was  the  first  discoverer  of  rich 
silver  float  in  the  district;  this  was  in  1881. 

On  the  strength  of  "Cherokee  Jim's"  find,  John  Black  and 
a  partner  by  the  name  of  Sloan,  discovered  and  located  the 
Blue  Bell  (now  Alhambra)  mine,  the  source  oi  the  rich  float 
found  by  the  negro. 

Shortly  after  the  location  of  the  Blue  Bell  (Alhambra)  the 
Rose  and  Black  Hawk  were  discovered  and  located  in  the 
order  named. 

A  man  by  the  name  of  Shedd  soon  afterward  bought  up 
practically  every  location  made  at  that  time. 

The  Alhambra  (formerly  Blue  Bell)  lode  seems  to  be  a 
contact  fissure  occurring  between  syenite  and  a  peculiar 
porphyry;  the  width  of  the  vein  is  remarkably  uniform,  vary- 
ing from  two  to  four  feet,  and  well  defined.  A  talcose  vein- 


\K\V    MEXICO    MINKS   AND    M  I  X  KKA  LS.  .>." 

stuff  containing  some  quartz  gangue,  tills  the  tissure;  the 
whole  of  this  product  is  fairly  well  mineralized. 

Native  silver  and  argentite  constitute  the  character  of  the 
ore,  which  occurs  in  narrow  rich  shoots  and  frequently  runs 
as  high  as  15,000  ounces  per  ton.  A  depth  of  about  400  feet 
is  attained  on  the  Alhambra  with  drifts  to  the  same  extent. 

The  Solid  Silver  Mining  Company  has  eight  patented 
claims;  the  principal  location  of  the  group,  and  the  one  on 
which  the  most  development  has  been  done,  is  the  Black 
Hawk.  The  records  of  the  company  shovy  that  the  mine  has 
produced  nearly  $600,000  in  silver;  one  car  load  of  the  ore  is 
said  to  have  brought  almost  $28,000. 

About  750  feet  of  work  constitute  the  development:  the 
character  of  the  formation  is  much  the  same  as  at  the 
Alhambra. 

Xext  in  importance  is  the  Hobson  group:  the  vein  is  nearly 
four  feet  wide  on  an  average  and  a  depth  of  about  300  feet  has 
been  reached. 

Clark's  Peak  District. 

Clark's  peak  district  is  somewhat  obscure:  it  lies  west  of 
Silver  City  about  30  miles,  near  a  prominent  peak  called, 
Clark,  after  the  discoverer  of  mineral  in  that  section.  The 
region  is  more  definitely  located  by  referring  it  to  township 
18,  south,  and  range  18,  west,  which  is  to  the  northeast  of  the 
Anderson  district. 

There  are  four  patented  properties  here  and  the  ores  carry 
gold,  silver,  copper  and  iron. 

Nothing,  absolutely,  is  doing  in  the  district. 

Burro  Mountain  District. 

On  account  of  the  Apache  Indians  the  Burro  Mountain 
district  never  received  more  than  passing  notice  until  in  the 
later  '70s.  and  early  '80s. 

The  district  lies  about  fifteen  miles  southwest  of  Silver 
City,  in  Grant  county. 

It  seems  that  two  brothers,  Robert  and  John  Metcalfe, 
were  the  first  to  make  locations  in  the  region,  in  about  the 
year  1871. 

At  that  time  these  mountains  were  the  strong  hold  of  the 


56  NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS. 

savage  Apaches  and  it  was  a  common  belief  that  no  prospector 
ever  returned  who  chanced  to  wander  into  the  region.  The 
beautiful  Mangas  valley  to  the  northeast  received  its  name 
from  the  celebrated  Apache  chieftain,  Mangas  Coloradas, 
whose  deeds  are  written  in  blood  on  the  pages  of  frontier 
history. 

The  "old  timer"  John  E.  Coleman,  better  known  in  the 
early  days  as  "Turquoise  John,"  is  generally  credited  as  being 
the  discoverer  of  the  district,  since  nothing  of  any  con- 
sequence was  ever,  done  before  his  time.  He  was  in  the 
district  in  1879  and  made  a  number  of  locations  of  both  copper 
and  turquoise,  having  discovered  turquoise  in  some  ancient 
workings  during  that  year.  The  years  1882-5  witnessed 
considerable  activity  throughout  the  district  and  the  better 
part  of  the  ground  was  taken  up  at  that  time.  During  this 
active  period  two  small  smelters  were  erected,  the  Paschal 
smelter  and  one  other;  these  were  the  first  installations  of 
modern  appliances  in  the  district.  Neither  of  the  plants 
proved  successful  and  the  camp  was  condemned  for  a  while 
on  this  account.  Everything  lay  dormant  until  1900,  when 
the  district  was  revived  by  more  careful  and  systematic 
prospecting  and  mining. 

A  100-ton  concentrating  plant  is  being  erected  at  the  St. 
Louis  mine  and  the  recently  erected  Ben  Johnson  smelter  in 
"Dead  Man's''  canyon  has  been  torn  down  and  removed  to 
Silver  City  on  account  of  the  lack  of  water  and  fluxes. 

Johnson's  smelter  is  now  in  successful  operation  at  Silver 
City  and  a  second  smelter  is  being  erected  on  the  site  of  the 
old  Silver  City  reduction  works,  by  the  Comanche  Mining  and 
Smelting  Company. 

Among  some  of  the  more  familiar  properties  of  the  district 
are:  The  Klondike,  St.  Louis  group,  Virginia,  King  and 
Queen,  Comanche  group,  Jo  E.  Sheridan  group,  Carter 
group,  Morrill  group,  Favorite,  Samson  group,  Silver  City 
mine,  Hazel  group,  Fannie,  Tarantula  group,  Santa  Ana 
group,  Connecticut  mine  and  the  Amazon  group;  beside 
the  many  valuable  mines  of  turquoise. 

A  majority  of  the  copper  properties  are  now  consolidated 
under  the  management  of  the  Burro  Mountain  Copper  Com- 
pany and  one  or  two  other  organizations  of  like  character. 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS.  0< 

In  the  Burro  mountain  district  proper,  the  chief  metallic 
ore  is  copper:  on  it  and  the  turquoise  (see  chapter  on  tur- 
quoise) depend  the  success  of  the  region.  The  principal 
copper-bearing  portion  of  the  Burro  mountains,  covers  an 
area  of  three  miles  in  length  by  about  two  miles  in  breadth. 

Only  in  a  brief  and  general  way  has  anything  ever  been 
written  or  done  concerning  the  geology  of  the  district. 

The  general  strike  of  the  formation  is  observed  to  be  in  an 
easterly  and  westerly  direction.  On  the  east  the  formations 
are  largely  covered  by  andesite  breccias  and  conglomerates, 
which  have  apparently  come  from  the  eruptive  region  about 
Bullard's  peak,  which  lies  a  few  miles  to  the  north. 

Granite  and  trachyte  porphyries  are  the  characteristic  rock 
features;  these  are  traversed  by  numerous  small  quartzite 
dikes.  Metasomatic  action  has  produced  extensive  kaolini- 
zation  of  the  feldspars  throughout  the  various  portions  of  the 
district.  It  is  chiefly  in  these  koalinized  rocks  that  the  most 
valuable  turquoise  of  the  region  is  found.  The  metallic  ore 
bodies  consist  of  a  low  grade  copper  carbonate,  in  which  the 
seams  and  seamlets  of  the  rocks  of  the  whole  district  are 
more  or  less  permeated.  In  many  of  these  veinlets  and  seams 
some  very  high  grade  chalcocite  and  cuprite  are  found, 
associated  with  the  malachite.  The  shattered  condition  of 
the  mineralized  rocks  conclusively  shows  that  the  region  has 
been  subjected  to  secondary  movement,  and  at  a  time  prior  to 
the  tilling  in  of  the  interstices,  due  to  fracture,  with  the  cupri- 
ferous solutions. 

This  latter  movement  may  be  accounted  for  by  the  intrud- 
ing of  the  granite  core  into  the  contiguous  rocks;  the  latter, 
afterward  becoming  the  copper  bearing  series.  It  seems 
that  infiltration  was  downward,  and  the  sutures  composing 
the  stock- work  of  veins  and  cracks  were  filled  by  the  cupri- 
ferous solutions,  leached  from  the  surrounding  country 
rocks.  From  a  cursory  examination  of  the  district  made  on 
April  5,  1904,  by  the  writer,  it  appears  to  have  ultimately 
a  reasonably  fair  future  for  success. 


CHAPTER  IX. 


VIRGINIA  (Shakespeare)  AND  PYRAMID  DISTRICTS. 

These  districts  lie  in  the  pyramid  range  of  mountains 
immediately  south  of  Lordsburg  in  Grant  county;  the  locality 
was  known  as  Ralston  (Shakespeare)  in  the  early  days. 
Prospecting  began  here  as  far  back  as  1870,  and  a  veritable 
boom  centered  in  this  region  about  that  time.  A  man  by  the 
name  of  Ralston  was  the  principal  operator  and  was  connected 
with  one  of  the  leading  banking  concerns  in  San  Francisco, 
and  who,  a  few  years  later,  committed  suicide  by  drowning 
in  San  Francisco  bay. 

Some  sharpers  are  said  to  have  salted  the  country  in  the 
vicinity  of  Lee's  peak  with  diamonds  in  the  early  '70s,  and 
reaped  quite  a  harvest  of  wealth  from  the  unsuspecting 
''tender  foot."  It  is  claimed  that  they  had  the  localities 
carefully  marked  where  the  gems  were  hidden  and  pretended 
to  discover  them.  One  diamond  is  yet  said  to  remain  in  the 
sands  of  that  section,  since  the  locality  became  lost  and  the 
tricksters  failed  to  recover  it  before  leaving  the  country. 

An  illustration  of  the  excitement  that  existed  in  New 
Mexico,  in  the  boom  times  on  the  advent  of  the  Santa  Fe 
railway,  is  given  from  a  copy  of  an  old  "dodger,"'  to  which  the 
writer  is  indebted  to  Dr.  M.  M.  Crocker,  of  Lordsburg.  It 
was  printed  on  blue  paper  8x12  inches  and  reads  as  follows  : 

HO  !  FOR  THE 

GOLD  AND  SILVER  MINES 

OF 

NEW  MEXICO. 

"Fortune  hunters,  capitalists,  poor  men,  sickly  folks,  all 
"whose  hearts  are  bowed  down  and  would  live  long,  be  rich,, 
"healthy  and  happy,  come  to  our  sunny  clime  and  see  for 
"yourselves. 

"The  Atchison,  Topeka  and  Santa  Fe  Railroad,  has  struck 
"the  Rio  Grande,  and  is  pushing  down  the  rich  valley,  flanked 
"by  mountains  full  of  gold  and  silver  ores,  sulphurets, 


Ni;\V    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS.  ."!) 

"carbonates,  chlorides  and  rich  placers  not  yet  prospected. 

"Daily  mail  coaches  and  telegraph  lines  to  all  points.  The 
"whistle  of  the  conquering  locomotive  will  soon  be  heard  in 
"the  newly  discovered  mining  camps  of  New  Placers,  Silver 
"Buttes,  Galisteo  district  and  the  famous  Cerrillos,  the 
"mountains  around  Albuquerque,  the  rich  leads  in  the  moun- 
" tains  back  of  Socorro,  the  mines  near  Belen,  and  the  mines 
"near  Fort  Craig;  then  comes  the  world  renowned  Mesilla 
"valley  with  its  vines  and  fruits,  encircled  by  the  Organ  and 
"other  mountains  from  which  fortunes  have  been  extracted. 

"Westward  lies  Silver  City,  with  its  mills  and  mines;  then 
"comes  Shakespeare,  the  crowning  camp  of  New  Mexico,  with 
"San  Simon  and  its  Carbonate  mountains  hard  by — the  latter 
"named  camp  about  4,000  feet  above  the  sea  on  the  divide  of 
"the  continent.  Here  the  Rocky  mountains  end  and  the  Sierra 
"Madre  mountains  begin.  Here  the  bold  out-croppings  tower- 
ing fifty  feet  in  the  air,  bearing  gold,  silver,  copper  and  lead, 
"greet  the  traveler  twenty  miles  distant  upon  his  approach— 
"the  Eighth  Wonder  of  the  World.  Here  the  Atchison, 
"Topeka  and  Santa  Pe  and  the  Southern  Pacific  railways 
"have  fixed  their  point  of  crossing. 

"In  full  view  of  Shakespeare  tower  up  the  Florida,  Burro, 
"Steins  peak,  Dos  Cabezas  and  Castillita  peaks  of  Old  Mexico: 
"all  full  of  mineral  and  not  yet  prospected. 

"N.  B.  Information  willingly  furnished  by  all  government, 
"territorial  and  county  officials  and  citizens  generally.'' 

The  date  of  this  dodger  is  not  given  but  it  must  have  been 
in  the  year  1H80. 

In  the  diffused  light  of  nearly  a  quarter  of  a  century  later, 
the  Eighth  Wonder  of  the  World,  barely  casts  a  visible  shadow 
and  the  mighty  croppings  towering  fifty  feet  in  the  air  have 
vanished  forever  from  sight. 

The  old  camp  of  Ralston  (Shakespeare),  once  the  scene  of 
frontier  activity,  is  fast  passing  into  decay  and  many  of  its 
fallen  walls  are  playing  hide  and  seek  in  the  shifting  sands  of 
the  desert. 

About  three  miles  to  the  north  of  this  almost  deserted 
village,  the  prediction  of  the  "dodger''  has  been  virtual!}' 
realized;  here,  two  railways  cross,  creating  a  new  town,  which 
have  transformed  the  early  mirage  on  the  western  plain  into 


60  NEW    MEXICO   MINES   AND   MINERALS. 

a  living  reality.    All  hailLordsburg  the  Phoenix  of  a  vanished 
village. 

The  mineral  bearing  area  in  the  Virginia  and  Pyramid 
districts  is  about  five  by  fourteen  miles  in  extent. 

Eruptive  flows  and  extensive  dikes  characterize  the  region. 
A  network  of  mineralized  veins  and  seams,  running  in 
various  directions,  seem  to  pervade  the  districts. 

The  ore  of  the  two  districts  is  principally  a  sulphide  and 
carries  values  in  gold,  silver,  lead  and  copper.  Deep  mining 
would  appear  to  make  the  region  prominent  in  copper. 

Development  now  going  forward  on  several  of  the  properties 
will  soon  demonstrate  the  value  of  the  ore  bodies  at  depth. 

Adjoining  the  Virginia  district  on  the  south  is  situated  the 
Pyramid  district;  no  definite  boundary  line  exists  between 
the  two.  From  the  pyramidal  shape  of  some  of  the  mountains, 
the  name  of  the  district  was  suggested. 

The  most  important  property  in  the  Pyramid  district  is  the 
Viola  group,  embracing  the  Leidendorf  mine  and  mill,  belong- 
ing to  the  Pyramid  Mining  Company. 

This  mine  is  purely  a  silver  chloride  proposition,  and  at  one 
time  produced  a  large  quantity  of  silver  bullion.  For  a 
number  of  years  the  property  has  lain  idle  and  the  mill  is  out 
of  repair. 

Another  property  known  as  the  Silver  Tree  group,  owned 
by  D.  E.  Miller,  is  deserving  of  mention  in  this  district. 

In  the  Virginia  district  lie  the  bulk  of  the  locations  of  the 
region.  At  the  Aberdeen  mine  a  milling  plant  has  been  in 
operation  at  intervals  for  several  years;  the  property  has 
produced  considerable  values  in  gold,  silver  and  lead.  The 
mill  consists  of  rolls  and  steam  stamps  for  crushing,  and  has 
two  Wilfley  tables;  its  capacity  is  15  tons. 

The  Superior  and  associated  mines  of  the  group  are  exten- 
sively developed  and  have  a  large  quantity  of  low  grade  ore  on 
the  dump;  gold,  silver  and  copper  are  the  metallic  values. 

Since  nothing  more  than  extensive  development  is  going  on 
in  the  camp  it  will  suffice  to  enumerae  the  principal  proper- 
ties: 

Wabash  group,  Cobra  Negra  group,  Dundee  group,  Ontario 
and  McGinty,  Galena  Prince  group,  Shoo-fly  group,  The  Three 
Heroes,  Carrie,  Docotah  Pearl  group,  Eighty-five  group,  The 


M:\\     MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS.  61 

Navy  group,  Ninety-nine  group  and  Lena  group;  the  latter 
group  embraces  the  Miners  Chest. 

In  connection  with  the  latter  property  a  75-ton  concentrat- 
ing plant  was  installed  in  1901,  consisting  of  four  Huntington 
mills;  four  Wilfiey,  three  Standard  and  one  Bar tlett  tables, 
which  proved  a  failure.  The  erection  of  such  a  plant  at 
Lorbsburg,  live  miles  away  from  the  mine  and  transporting 
the  ore  by  traction  engines,  when  the  mine  itself  was  not 
proved  or  properly  developed,  seemed  injudicious  and  ill  ad- 
vised on  the  part  of  the  management;  the  ultimate  result  was 
no  surprise,  to  any  person  skilled  in  successful  mine  man- 
agement. 

Such  disasters  have  been  too  often  the  case  in  New  Mexico; 
and  the  practice  of  erecting  plants  before  the  property  is  fully 
developed  and  installing  mills  and  machinery  by  one  unskilled 
as  a  practical  metallurgist  and  mining  engineer,  cannot  be 
criticised  too  severely.  Such  calamities  are  not  only  visita- 
tions of  financial  distress  and  ruin  on  those  furnishing  the 
capital,  but  it  inflicts  injury,  and  oftentimes  gives  a  merito- 
rious district  a  "black  eye/'  from  which  it  takes  years  to 
recover. 

Gold  Hill  District. 

Gold  Hill  district  is  situate  twelve  miles  northeast  of 
Lordsburg  and  forms  another  region  of  Grant  county's 
numerous  mining  camps. 

The  center  of  the  district  lies  in  a  basin  very  similar  to  that 
of  Santa  Rita.  The  core  of  this  basin  is  a  feldspathic  granite, 
and  trachyte  flows  seem  to  encircle  the  whole;  eruptive  dikes 
break  through  the  porphyry  and  granite  series  of  rocks,  which 
are  most  intimately  connected  with  the  occurrence  of  the  ore. 
The  veins  are  all  fissures  or  contact-fissures.  Gold  and  silver 
are  the  only  values  found  in  the  ore;  occasionally  some  copper 
is  found  in  a  few  properties. 

David  Egelston  is  the  pioneer  and  discoverer  of  precious 
metals  of  the  camp.  He  is  a  '49er.  and  a  typical  prospector 
of  the  past  generation.  Egelston  came  into  Gold  Hill  from 
Mexico  with  two  partners,  Robert  Black  and  Tom  Park,  in 
September,  1884.  They  located  the  Gold  Chief,  which  they 
developed  during  the  fall  and  winter,  and  the  following 


62  NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS. 

year,  1885,  sold  it  to  Foster  and  company,  who  erected  the 
Standard  mill  in  1886. 

The  Standard  group,  consisting  of  the  Standard,  California, 
Golden  Chief,  Noon-day,  Eighty-six  and  the  Little  Charlie, 
is  patented  property  and  supplied  the  Standard  mill  with  ore; 


Fig.  12-DAVID  EGELSTON,    a  '49er  and  Discoverer  of 
Gold  Hill.  Photographed  by  F.  A.  Jones,  April,  19O4. 

the  principal  amount  being  taken  from  the  Standard  and  Gold 
Chief  claims.  This  mill  was  operated  until  refractory  ore  was 
encountered;  it  has  been  idle  now  a  number  of  years. 

Another  mill  was  erected  about  the  time  the  Standard  mill 
was  being  operated;  this  is  known  as  the  Dr.  Woods  mill. 


MOW    MIOXKJO    MIXES    AM)    MINERALS.  63 

Frank  G.  Cline,  lessee,  has  been  running  5-stamps  of  this 
latter  mill  since  1902  in  connection  with  a  small  cyanide  plant, 
with  marked  success.  Cline  took  most  of  his  ore  from  the 
Gold  Belt  lode;  he  also  worked  over  an  old  tailing  dump 
by  cyaniding,  which  accumulated  from  the  original  operation 
of  the  mill,  with  satisfactory  results. 

The  Little  Chief  group  is  owned  by  the  redoubtable  David 
Egelston,  who  still  is  enthusiastic  over  the  prospect  of  mak- 
ing a  fortune  as  he  was  in  the  early  days  of  California,  over 
half  a  century  ago. 

A  number  of  properties  are  fairly  well  developed  with  good 
showings  of  becoming  producers,  if  properly  managed. 
Among  that  class  are  the  Lottie  and  Golden  Culley,  Summit 
group,  Allie  and  Carrie  Lee.  The  more  favorable  prospects 
are  Beta  and  Gamma,  Never  Fail,  Western  Belle  group,  Alma 
group  and  the  Rattlesnake. 

Malone  District. 

This  district  is  northwest  of  Gold  Hill  a  few  miles  in  Grant 
county,  and  was  named  after  the  discoverer  John  B.  Malone, 
in  W4. 

In  Thompson's  canyon  and  Gold  gulch,  tributary  to  Malone 
district,  placer  mining  was  conducted  a  number  of  years  prior 
to  1884.  Fred  B.  Malone,  S.  J.  Wright  and  John  Brown 
during  April,  1904,  made  some  new  discoveries  in  a  westerly 
direction  from  the  old  find,  about  one  mile. 

Placer  gold  seems  to  be  plentiful  in  certain  gulches  which 
are  now  being  worked  by  Lordsburg  parties.  It  is  understood 
that  a  large  quartz  and  concentrating  mill  is  now  in  course  of 
erection  at  that  point;  the  placers  would  indicate  gold  lodes  in 
that  region. 

Eureka  (Hachita)  District. 

About  six  miles  southwest  of  the  new  Hachita  postoffice,  in 
Grant  county,  is  the  old  Hachita  mining  camp. 

This  camp  flourished  a  short  time  in  the  eaily  days,  but  has 
remained  very  quiet  since  1890. 

Turquoise  is  mined  at  old  Hachita,  and  of  a  very  fine  quality. 
These  mines  were  worked  to  a  certain  extent  by  the  aborig- 
ines and  perhaps  later  by  the  early  Spanish  explorers. 


64  NEW    MEXICO   MINES  AND   MINERALS. 

Numerous  old  pits,  quaint  tools  and  pottery  were  in  evidence 
at  the  time  the  first  American  prospectors  came  into  this 
region. 

Most  of  the  veins  are  contact  between  limestone  and 
porphyry;  the  mineral  is  enclosed  in  the  limestone  near  the 
contact. 

The  principal  ore  from  the  district  is  a  silver-lead  carbo- 
nate. Occasionally  copper  predominates  in  some  of  the 
locations,  as  in  the  Copper  Dick  group 'especially;  the  copper 
feature  is  not  so  strong  in  the  Klondike  and  in  the  King 
group. 

In  the  silver-lead  carbonate  properties  are  the  American 
group.  Prize,  Michigan  group,  Lady  Franklin  and  Silver  Bell. 

The  production  has  been  very  light  for  the  last  several 
years.  The  ruins  of  an  old  smelter  serve  as  a  memento  of  the 
former  glory  of  the  now  quiet  camp. 

Fremont  District. 

In  a  southeast  direction  from  the  Hachita  postoffice,  Grant 
county,  the  Fremont  mining  district  is  situated.  All  of  the 
mineral  deposits  lie  in  or  along  the  contact  between  lime  and 
porphyry.  The  ores  are  principally  a  silver-lead  carbonate; 
in  some  instances  good  values  of  copper  are  found  associated 
with  the  prevailing  type  of  mineral.  Zinc,  also,  seems  to  occur 
rather  plentifully  in  a  few  properties.  The  Jack  Doyle  mine 
is  the  original  and  best  known  property  in  the  district.  Next 
in  prominence  is  the  Bee  Hive,  which  is  more  extensively 
developed  than  the  Jack  Doyle.  The  American  and  Sulphide 
are  fairly  good  prospects.  This  district,  like  the  Eureka  (Old 
Hachita),  has  never  been  a  large  producer. 

Apache  No.  2,  District. 

The  naming  of  this  district  was  due  to  the  frequent  raids 
made  by  the  Apache  Indians  at  the  time  the  region  was  first 
being  prospected. 

In  one  of  those  raids,  Robert  Anderson,  the  discoverer  and 
present  lessee  of  the  Apache  group  of  mines,  was  severely 
wounded  in  an  engagement,  which  resulted  in  the  permanent 
disabling  of  one  leg. 

The  Apache  group  of    mines  is  the  principal  and  only 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS.  I'M 

producing  property  in  the  district.  It  is,  in  fact,  the  best 
property  in  that  section  of  New  Mexico. 

The  ore  bodies  lie  in  the  limestone  at  or  near  the  contact 
with  the  porphyry.  The  ore  is  essentially  a  silver-copper 
carbonate;  no  gold  or  lead  present.  ;A  steady  production 
has  been  going  on  for  years  under  the  efficient  management 
of  the  lessee. 

This  seems  to  be  the  only  property  to  speak  of  in  the 
district;  although  numerous  locations  have  been  made,  and 
partly  developed,  but  without  any  satisfactory  results. 

The  Apache  district  is  joined  on  the  northeast  by  the 
Fremont  district  and  lies  a  few  miles  to  the  southeast  of 
Hachita  postoffice. 


CHAPTER  X. 


KIMBALL  (Steins  Pass)  DISTRICT. 

Prospecting  in  western  New  Mexico,  along  the  Arizona  line 
has  never  been  carried  on  systematically,  until  recently.  The 
country  generally  is  much  broken  and  practically  destitute 
of  water;  timber  is  also  scarce. 

From  a  hasty  trip  through  this  region  in  May,  1903,  it  would 
be  impossible  to  give  a  detailed  description  of  the  district. 

In  the  vicinity  of  the  gap,  knowrn  as  Steins  Pass,  the  effect 
of  erosion  on  the  rock  system  is  very  much  in  evidence.  The 
whole  country  to  the  north  and  south  for  many  miles  forms 
one  great  amphitheater  of  past  volcanic  activity.  Much  of 
the  former  roughness  of  the  topography  has  been  smoothed 
by  the  agencies  of  both  wind  and  water  and  the  resulting 
detritus  has  formed  the  flat  alkali  plains  which  lie  to  the  east. 
The  country  rocks  consist  of  granite,  lime  and  andesite 
porphyries;  the  latter,  especially,  are  very  noticeable  near 
the  Arizona  line. 

The  minerals  which  abound  are  gold,  silver,  copper  and 
lead.  The  latter  mineral  predominates  to  the  south  at  Granite 
Gap,  in  the  San  Simon  district,  while  silver  is  pronounced  at 
the  Volcano  mine  to  the  north,  in  the  Kimball  district,  now 
under  discussion. 

Generally  speaking,  the  ores  occur  in  contact  veins;  although 
fissures,  cutting  all  formations,  are  of  frequent  occurrence. 

Most  prominent  among  the  properties  of  this  district  is  the 
Volcano  mine.  Two  claims,  only,  form  this  group — the  Vol- 
cano and  Necessity. 

The  Volcano  vein,  apparently,  is  the  mother  lode  of  the 
district.  The  strike  is  approximately  north  and  south  and 
the  dip  is  about  10°  toward  the  east  to  a  depth  of  200  feet; 
after  which  depth  the  vein  stands  vertical. 

The  vein  matter  is  a  quartz  gangue  and  varies  in  width 
from  two  to  six  feet;  it  lies  along  the  contact  of  a  felsite  and 
porphyritic  andesite.  The  principal  value  of  the  ore  is  in  the 
silver;  the  gold  value  is  not  so  pronounced. 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS.  67 

A  ten  stamp,  wet  crushing,  pan  amalgamation  mill  is  on  the 
property;  the  plant  has  been  idle  since  1903.  The  mine  is 
credited  with  $110,000  production  up  to  January  1,  1904. 

South  and  adjoining  the  Volcano  property,  lies  in  the  order 
named  the  Wyman,  Fraction,  Pa-sh-ly-ky  and  Bachelor 
claims;  to  the  north  are  the  Boss,  the  Queen  and  others;  all 
of  which  lie  on  the  Volcano  lode. 

The  old  Daley  group  is  noted  as  the  pioneer  working  of  the 
district;  it  having  produced  in  the  early  days. 

The  Beck  group  consists  of  nine  claims  and  is  now  being 
extensively  developed  by  the  National  Gold  and  Silver  Mining 
Company.  Other  new  companies  have  been  organized  during 
1903  and  expect  to  begin  systematic  work  at  once. 

Several  prospects  are  being  developed  which  include  the 
Merrimac,  Buckhorn,  Dewey,  Carbonate  Hill,  Coon,  Volun- 
teer, Mayflower,  Horse  Shoe,  Iron  Clad,  Wild  Eagle,  Buckeye, 
Colorado,  Arizona  King,  Ohio  and  Gold  Quartz. 

Steins  Pass,  now  famous  in  the  Peloncillo  mountains,  was 
named  in  honor  of  one  Captain  Stein  who  fought  his  last,  yet 
victorious  battle  with  the  fierce  Apaches,  in  1873. 

This  engagement  occurred  at  Doubtful  canyon  on  the  line 
of  New  Mexico  and  Arizona,  ten  miles  northwest  of  the  pass 
at  Steins  peak.  The  old  Butterfield  Stage  route  lay  through 
Steins  Pass  (the  point  where  the  Southern  Pacific  railway 
passes),  through  Doubtful  canyon  and  through  Apache  can- 
yon in  the  Chiricuahua  mountains,  the  next  range  west,  near 
old  Ft.  Bowie.  Through  these  three  passes,  the  early 
emigrant  trains  to  southern  California  were  often  ambushed 
by  the  Indians. 

Captain  Stein  was  said  to  have  been  guarding  the  passes 
at  the  time  he  was  killed. 

The  first  prospecting  was  done  in  the  Kim  ball  district  by 
California  and  Nevada  prospectors  about  the  time  the  man 
Ralston  (who  suicided  afterward  in  San  Francisco)  created 
the  excitement  at  Ralston,  now  the  Virginia  (Shakespeare) 
district,  which  lies  immediately  south  of  Lordsburg;  this 
was  in  the  latter  part  of  the  seventies  of  the  past  century. 
The  second  attempt  at  prospecting  was  conducted  by 
Williams,  Murphy  and  others  who  drifted  into'this  region  on 
the  crest  of  the  tidal  wave  of  mining  excitement,  which  was 


68  NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS. 

passing  over  the  territory.  The  Apache  Indians,  at  that 
time,  soon  forced  the  aggressive  prospectors  out  of  the 
country. 

About  the  years  1883-9  the  first  real  prospecting  was  begun 
by  T.  R.  Brandt,  John  Corbett,  Frank  K.  Wyman,  Chas.  K. 
Smith,  Tom  Fox,  Robert  .Williams  and  later  Bill  Morris. 

The  three  first  named  prospectors  shortly  afterward 
turned  their  attention  to  the  San  Simon  district,  lying  im- 
mediately to  the  south,  where  they  met  with  success  in  the 
Granite  Gap  property. 

San  Simon  District. 

This  district  is  a  counterpart  of  the  Kimball  district  already 
described.  It  lies  south  of  Steins  Pass,  the  Southern  Pacific 
railway  is  the  dividing  line  between  it  and  the  Kimball  dis- 
trict. The  Peloncillo  range  of  mountains  embraces  both  the 
Kimball  and  San  Simon  districts  and  the  general  geological 
characteristics  of  both  districts  are  practically  the  same. 

The  principal  mine  of  the  district  which  is  at  Granite  Gap 
was  successfully  developed  and  operated  by  Corbett,  Wyman 
and  Brandt,  who  disposed  of  the  mine  to  S.  Chas.  Pratt 
of  El  Paso  in  1903. 

The  deposit  occurs  along  and  in  the  lime  contact  and  is  an 
ideal  fluxing  ore;  the  smelter  at  El  Paso,  readily  pays  the 
railway  freight  charges  and  treats  the  ore  gratis  in  order  to 
secure  it  as  flux.  The  ore  is  a  lead  carbonate  and  carries  on 
an  average  30  per  cent,  iron,  12  ozs.  silver  and  35  per  cent, 
lead,  with  a  lime  gangue. 

The  Johnny  Bull  lode,  Little  Lucile,  Mineral  and  Mineral 
Hill  group  are  the  other  properties  best  known;  the  latter 
group  is  owned  by  the  Mineral  Mountain  Mining  Company  of 
Chicago. 

California  District. 

This  district  was  organized  and  established  May,  1904,  and 
is  the  newest  in  the  territory. 

It  lies,  in  part,  in  southwestern  Grant  county,  and  the  line 
between  New  Mexico  and  Arizona  divides  it;  the  greater  por- 
tion of  the  district  is  in  Arizona. 

The  nearest  railway  point  is  Rodeo,  a  station  on  the  El  Paso 
and  Southwestern  Railway. 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS.  69 

A  camp  by  the  name  of  Paradise  has  sprung  into  existence 
and  the  ground  has  bean  located,  so  it  is  said,  for  nearly 
twenty  miles  around. 

The  cause  of  the  excitement  is  over  a  rich  copper  find  in 
that  region;  gold,  silver  and  lead  also  exist. 

The  first  company  organized  to  operate  in  the  district  is 
known  as  the  Chiricuahua  Development  Company. 

Nothing  definite  is  yet  known  concerning  the  formations, 
nature  of  the  veins  and  ore  bodies. 

Steeple  Rock  (Carlisle)  and  Black  Mountain  Districts. 

In  the  extreme  western  part  of  Grant  county,  near  the 
Arizona  line  may  be  found  the  old  Carlisle  district,  now 
known  as  Steeple  Rock.  This  district  was  first  prospected 
by  Judge  Potter  in  1881. 

The  Black  mountain  district,  is  in  reality,  only  a  particular 
portion  of  Steeple  Rock. 

A  few  years  later  much  development  was  carried  on  and 
several  large  companies  were  organized  to  develop  the 
region.  The  Steeple  Rock  Development  Company  and  the 
Laura  Consolidated  Company  were  the  most  prominent; 
these  organizations  were  controlled  by  English  capital. 

A  60-stamp  mill  was  erected  by  the  first  named  company, 
with  all  necessary  accessories,  and  operated  with  a  certain 
degree  of  success,  until  the  heavy  sulphide  ores  were 
reached.  In  1897,  work  was  suspended  and  the  plant  dis- 
mantled and  most  of  it  moved  to  various  parts  of  the  country; 
it  being  the  intention  of  the  owners  at  that  time  to  erect  a 
different  kind  of  plant,  using  a  different  method  in  the  ore 
treatment.  The  new  plant,  as  yet,  has  failed  to  materialize. 

The  ore  is  a  bluish-white  quartz  and  very  hard,  carrying 
values  in  gold  and  silver;  this  class  of  ore  is  the  prevailing 
type  over  the  entire  district.  Frequently,  sulphides  of  lead 
and  copper  are  associated  in  the  vein  filling. 

Most  generally  the  veins  are  of  the  true  fissure  type,  exist- 
ing between  walls  of  porphyry;  the  character  of  the  porphyry 
is,  perhaps,  an  augite-andesite. 

At  present  but  little  is  going  on  in  the  district  and  the  pro- 
duction has  decreased  to  almost  nothing. 

The  principal  groups  and  locations  are  as  follows: 


70  NEW  MEXICO  MINES  AND  MINERALS. 

Carlisle  group,  East  group,  Jim  Crow  group,  Laura  group, 
Big  Horse  Shoe  group,  National  Bank  group,  Bill-ali  group, 
Summit  group,  New  Year's  Gift  group,  Big  Pour  group,  the 
Alabama,  Henrietta,  Hortense  and  the  Little  Mack  group. 

In  the  latter  group  the  vein  is  a  contact  between  porphyry 
and  lime,  and  the  ore  is  characterized  as  bornite,  carrying 
some  values  in  gold  and  silver. 

Anderson  District. 

Lying  in  Grant  county,  about  midway  on  a  line  connecting 
Silver  City  and  Steeple  Rock,  and  on  the  east  side  of  the  Gila 
river,  is  the  locality  known  as  the  Anderson  mining  district. 

This  particular  region  was  first  exploited  by  Lou  Anderson, 
in  1881,  who  made  several  locations  about  that  time. 

Anderson  was  killed  in  1884,  either  accidentally,  by  the 
Indians  or  by  suicide,  it  was  never  known  definitely  how;  he 
was  found  a  few  hours  afterward  lying  dead  on  his  face  with 
a  bullet  hole  in  his  head.  His  Winchester  was  by  him  with 
an  empty  shell  in  the  barrel;  the  fatality  occurred  near  his 
mining  prospects. 

The  Anderson  district  has  never  been  a  producer;  the  chief 
reason  being  its  great  distance  from  transportation. 

A  number  of  copper  prospects  are  held  by  the  Alessandro 
Copper  Mining  Company,  as  also,  a  large  fluorite  lode;  this 
latter  deposit  is  known  locally  as  the  "onyx  property,"  and 
is  situated  immediately  on  the  east  side  of  the  river  at  the 
mouth  of  the  box. 

To  the  southwest  of  this  fluor  spar  deposit  about  three  and 
one-half  miles  is  the  celebrated  ricolite  quarry,  which  is  men- 
tioned under  the  chapter  on  building  and  ornamental  stones 
in  this  volume. 

Granites,  green-stones  and  intrusive  dikes  characterize  the 
rock  formation  of  the  district. 

It  would  seem  from  a  cursory  examination  of  the  district, 
that  a  considerable  production  would  be  the  outcome,  were 
transportation  facilities  more  favorable. 

Telegraph  District. 

This  is  another  one  of  Grant  county's  numerous  mining 
districts.  It  lies  to  the  northwest  about  six  miles,  and  on  the 
opposite  side  of  the  river  from  the  Anderson  district. 


NEW    MEXICO    MINKS   AND    MINERALS.  71 

The  district  is  practically  inaccessible;  the  mountains  are 
very  rugged  and  can  only  be  crossed  by  trail. 

Prom  the  point  of  the  old  Telegraph  Mining  Company's 
mill  (now  Dr.  H.  W.  Brown's  mill),  south  to  the  southwest 
corner  of  the  Anderson  district,  the  Gila  river  is  completely 
boxed.  The  river  at  one  time  evidently  was  dammed  here  for 
a  distance  of  seven  miles,  due  to  the  stupendous  volcanic  dis- 
turbances which  engulfed  the  entire  region  in  this  part  of 
New  Mexico,  These  disturbances  appear  to  have  taken 
place  about  the  close  of  the  Tertiary. 

Telegraph  district  was  discovered  in  July,  1881,  by  A.  J. 
Kirby,  a  Texan;  the  first  claim  located  by  him  was  the  Te- 
cumseh  lode,  a  silver  property.  Del  Potter  and  Dorsey 
brothers  were  among  the  first  arrivals,  immediately  after 
Kirby.  Much  excitement  existed  throughout  the  Territory 
about  this  time  and  the  country  was  crazed  over  the  numer- 
ous discoveries  and  mines  of  high  grade  silver  ores. 

About  three  years  after  Kirby's  discovery  the  Telegraph 
Mining  Company  was  organized,  and  in  1885  it  erected  a  15- 
stamp  mill  on  the  Gila,  at  the  head  of  the  box  in  the  river. 
This  enterprise  was  first  attended  with  marked  success;  the 
ore  body,  however,  being  small  was  soon  exhausted  and  the 
concern  collapsed.  The  mill  was  afterward  removed  from 
the  district. 

Dr.  H.  W.  Brown  and  associates  of  Silver  City,  erected  in 
1903,  a  small  leaching  plant  with  a  capacity  of  about  five  tons 
a  day,  on  the  old  Telegraph  company's  mill-site.  Dr.  Brown's 
method  of  recovery  of  the  silver  values  is  similar  to  that  of 
the  Russell  process. 

The  ores  of  the  district  are  usually  composed  of  an  indur- 
ated bluish  quartz,  containing  argentite  with  occasional 
cerargyrite. 

The  vein  in  which  Dr.  Brown  is  mining  his  ore  is  a  true 
fissure  in  granite;  the  silver  values  seem  to  have  been 
leached  from  former  superimposed  strata,  collecting  in  the 
fissure  receptacle  of  granite.  The  vein  from  which  the  old 
Telegraph  company  extracted  its  principal  ore,  lies  about 
one-fourth  of  a  mile  to  the  south  of  Dr.  Brown's  claim,  near 
the  top  of  the  mountain  and  is  a  contact  between  porphyry 
and  shale. 


72  NEW    MEXICO   MINES   AND   MINERALS. 

It  is  said  that  the  district  took  the  name  Telegraph,  due  to 
a  remark  made  by  the  discoverer  of  the  first  rich  ore,  who 
said  he  was  going  to  climb  to  the  top  of  a  certain  high  moun- 
tain (now  known  as  Telegraph  peak)  and  from  there  would 
telegraph  the  news  around  the  world  of  the  greatness  of  his 
find. 


CHAPTER   XI. 


ORGAN   DISTRICT. 

Lying  to  the  northeast  of  Las  Cruces,  in  Dona  Ana  county 
some  fifteen  miles,  is  the  Organ  mining  district. 

Rising  abruptly  from  the  level  plain  the  jagged  Organ  peaks 
present  an  appearance  similar  to  the  pipes  of  an  organ,  from 
which  the  mountain  range  took  its  name. 

A  conspicuous  isolated  granite  peak,  similar  in  character 
to  the  sharp  cones  or  spines  of  the  Organ  mountains,  marks 
the  southern  terminus  of  the  San  Andreas  range:  this  lone 
spine  is  known  as  the  San  Augustine  peak.  At  the  foot  of 
the  south  slope  of  this  monolith  is  the  San  Augustine  pass, 
which  separates  the  Organ  mountains  from  the  San  Andreas 
range.  This  famous  gap  in  the  mountains  affords  a  splendid 
wagon  road  and  renders  Gold  Camp  (Black  mountain),  which 
belongs  to  the  Organ  district,  accessible  from  the  west  side 
of  the  range. 

Lying  upon  the  granite,  or  its  gneissic  equivalent,  is  a 
quartzite  that  seems  to  have  been  derived  from  a  schistose- 
quartz  which  was  previously  a  superficial  portion  of  the 
subjacent  granitic  series.  The  age  of  both  the  quartzite  and 
granite  is  a  question  which  has  not  been  definitely  determined. 
Conformably  to  the  quartzite  is  a  partially  altered  silicios 
series  which  is  immediately  followed  by  the  massive  Carbon- 
iferous limestones.  It  is  in  or  near  these  limestones  in  which 
the  ore  bodies  of  the  district  lie;  deposition  being  chiefly  due 
topneumatolytic  action  resultingfrom  contactmetamorphism. 
The  commercial  metals  found  in  the  district  are  those  of  lead, 
silver  and  copper  on  the  west  side  of  the  range;  while  gold  is 
the  principal  metal  on  the  east  side. 

The  property  deserving  first  mention  on  account  of  its 
prominence  and  early  history  is  the  celebrated  Stephenson- 
Bennett  lead-silver  mines.  The  Stephenson  lode  was  discov- 
ered by  a  Mexican  in  1849.  Hugh  Stephenson  living  near-by 
on  the  Rio  Grande,  soon  afterward  became  a  partner  and 


NEW    MEXICO    MIXES   AND    MINERALS.  7." 

later  on  the  sole  owner  of  the  mine.  In  1858  he  sold  the  mine 
to  army  officers  of  the  United  States,  who  were  then  stationed 
at  FortFilmore,  for  $12,500. 

In  the  early  working  of  this  mine  no  powder  was  used  and 
what  the  pick  and  shovel  failed  to  do  was  left  undone.  Dur- 
ing the  years  1854-7  work  was  carried  on  in  a  more  system- 
atic manner  than  was  formerly  done;  and  the  estimated  pro- 
duction during  that  time  was  between  $80.000  and  $90,000. 
The  ore  up  to  18*2  was  carried  out  on  the  backs  of  the  labor- 
ers, as  no  hoist  or  windlass  had  ever  been  erected  up  to  that 
time.  Smelting  operations  were  conducted  in  an  adobe 
furnace,  on  the  Rio  Grande  at  Port  Film  ore,  sixteen  miles 
away;  the  ore  being  transported  on  the  backs  of  burros.  An 
ordinary  blacksmith's  bellows  supplied  the  blast. 

In  the  Mineral  Resources  of  the  U.  S.  for  1870  on  page  412, 
the  property  is  briefly  mentioned  as  a  producer. 

Work  was  hampered  in  the  earlier  years  by  the  Apache 
Indians  and  also,  by  the  Mexicans  whose  feelings  were  bitter 
toward  Americans,  as  a  result  of  the  Mexican  war. 

The  ore  first  mined  came  from  a  parallel  ledge  above  the 
present  main  workings;  some  of  which  carried  astonishingly 
high  values  in  silver. 

The  lower  vein  is  opened  by  a  tunnel  some  200  feet  long, 
driven  into  the  mountain  side  at  right  angles  to  the  veins. 
At  the  east  end  of  the  tunnel  where  the  same  cuts  the  lode  a 
winze  is  sunk  on  the  vein  to  a  depth  of  200  feet,  with  levels 
running  either  way  at  each  hundred  feet.  The  main  vein 
dips  to  the  west  about  80^,  and  the  strike  is  approximately 
north  and  south.  Some  splendid  ore  bodies  are  opened  up 
exposing  extensive  chambers  of  high  grade  sulphides  and 
carbonates  of  lead-silver.  Mud  caves  are  frequently  en- 
countered and  near  these  rich  ore  bodies  are  usually  found. 

Most  all  the  properties  of  this  camp  are  good  illustrations 
of  mineralization  due  to  the  effect  of  contact  metamorphism. 

The  hanging  wall  is  a  hard  blue  limestone  and  the  foot  wall 
is  a  granite-porphyry  dike;  the  contact  is  very  strongly 
marked  and  can  be  traced  for  a  distance  of  nearly  eight  miles 
along  the  foot  of  the  range.  The  ore  bodies  of  the  Bennett 
claim  are  principally  in  lime,  yet  the  porphyry  intrusive 
frequently  breaks  through  the  limestones  to  the  fractured 


NEW    MEXICO   MINES  AND   MINERALS.  77 

zone  or  fault-fissure  in  the  lime  rock,  and  thus  the  actual  con- 
tact of  the  dike  and  the  vein  occurs  in  a  number  of  places.  It- 
was  observed  that  cavities  in  the  limestone  not  having  com- 
munication with  the  dike  are  destitute  of  any  minerals.  There- 
fore, it  would  appear  that  the  dike  is  the  source  from  whence 
the  metallic  values  came. 

No  complex  system  of  faulting  has  been  found  in  the  dis- 
trict; although  dislocations  of  minor  importance  are  frequent- 
ly encountered. 

The  production  of  the  Stephenson-Bennett  mines  from 
their  discovery  to  the  year  1904,  is  approximately  $500,000; 
of  this  amount  $200,000  is  accredited  to  the  decade  between 
the  years  1890  and  1900. 

The  principal  minerals  found  in  this  property  are  galena, 
argentite,  anglesite  and  wulfenite.  Some  of  the  finest 
crystals  of  wulfenite  ever  found  in  New  Mexico  came  from 
the  Bennett  lode. 

About  six  miles  to  the  south  of  the  Stephenson-Bennett 
property  is  the  Modoc  mine;  this  also,  is  a  lead- silver  proposi- 
tion and  apparently  lies  on  the  same  contact.  This  property 
was  located  in  1879,  and  has  been  worked  in  a  spasmodic  way 
ever  since. 

The  chief  developments  consist  in  an  incline  shaft  185  feet, 
which  follows  the  dip  of  the  vein.  An  adit  tunnel  85  feet  in 
length  intercepts  this  shaft  at  95  feet  depth  on  the  incline. 
This  tunnel  is  extended  to  a  distance  of  85  feet  beyond  the 
shaft.  The  vein  is  about  seven  feet  in  width;  the  grade  of 
ore,  on  an  average,  is  rather  low.  A  dry  concentrating  plant — 
the  Hooper  pneumatic  process — was  installed  in  1902,  but 
was  not  a  success.  Hoisting  machinery,  compressed  air  for 
drilling  and  a  rope  tramway  constitute  the  principal  improve- 
ments. The  property  seems  to  be  one  of  considerable  merit, 
but  has  been  unfortunate  in  its  management;  it  is,  at  present 
1904,  idle. 

A  number  of  other  lead-silver  claims,  lying  between  the 
Modoc  and  the  Organ  postoffice,  cover  this  main  contact 
fissure;  some  of  which  may  eventually  become  producers. 

No  mining  claim  in  the  Organ  district  has  made  such  a 
favorable  showing  as  the  Torpedo,  in  the  same  length  of 
time.  It  lies  about  200  yards  east  of  the  Organ  post  office  on 


78  NEW    MEXICO   MINES   AND   MINERALS. 

the  main  contact  of  the  district.  Four  years  ago  it  was  only  a 
prospect;  now,  in  1904,  it  is  valued  at  a  quarter  of  a  million 
dollars  and  has  over  3,000  feet  of  shafts  and  drifts.  The 
property  is  copper-silver;  its  ores  are  oxides,  carbonates, 
sulphides  and  silicates  of  copper.  The  silver  is  chiefly 
argentite.  The  dimensions  of  the  ore  deposit  are  of  much 
magnitude  and  the  deposit  itself  is  similar  in  many  respects 
to  those  of  Bisbee,  Arizona. 

It  is  a  contact  deposit  between  porphyry  and  limestone; 
the  former  constitutes  the  foot  wall,  the  latter  formation  the 
hanging  wall.  The  strike  of  the  lode  is  northeasterly  and 
the  dip  is  slightly  toward  the  northwest.  Great  trouble  is 
experienced  in  handling  the  water;  the  flow  is  very  strong 
and  all  the  property  to  the  north  along  this  contact  is  appar- 
ently drained  by  the  pumps  in  the  Torpedo  mine. 

The  dike  at  this  point  is  somewhat  different  in  its  constitu- 
tion than  at  the  Stephenson-Bennett  and  Modoc  properties, 
which  lie  to  the  south.  Here,  the  mineralizing  influence  of 
the  dike  has  supplanted  the  lead  for  copper,  but  retained  the 
silver.  That  mineralization  was  induced  by  contact  meta- 
morphism  there  is  no  room  for  doubt. 

No  evidence  has  been  observed  in  the  district  which  would 
indicate  metalliferous  deposits,  prior  to  the  time  of  the 
dike. 

The  effect  of  metamorphism  is  better  studied  on  the  Cop- 
per Bar  and  Memphis  properties,  which  adjoin  the  Torpedo 
on  the  north,  than  at  any  other  place  in  the  district. 

The  character  of  the  limestone  has  been  entirely  changed 
on  the  Copper  Bar  and  Memphis,  which  has  resulted  in  the 
formation  of  massive  garnet  and  epidote.  This  alteration  is 
more  especially  noted  on  the  Memphis,  and  bears  a  close  re- 
semblance to  the  copper  districts  of  both  Clifton  and 
Morenci. 

The  Memphis  and  Copper  Bar  are  not  entensively  devel- 
oped, but  they  are  most  favorably  situated  and  are  to  be  re- 
garded as  valuable  copper  properties. 

One  mile  farther  to  the  north  is  the  Excelsior  which  has 
500  feet  of  work  done  on  it;  a  very  good  showing  of  copper  is 
noted.  The  Merrimac  and  Little  Buck  are  adjoining  claims 
and  lie  to  the  northeast  of  the  Excelsior  about  one  mile.  The 


NEW    MEXICO    MINKS    AND    MINERALS.  79 

former  is  a  lead-zinc  proposition;  the  latter  is  silver-gold. 
The  Little  Buck  deposit  has  been  an  anomaly;  some  $50,000 
in  silver  and  gold  have  been  taken  out  within  a  few  feet  of  the 
surface.  Apparently  this  was  a  pocket  between  the  dolomite 
and  porphyry,  the  values  having  been  leached  from  the 
porphyry  and  thus  concentrated  by  descending  waters. 

Other  properties  in  this  portion  of  the  district  are  looked 
upon  with  favor,  although  they  can  be  classed  nothing  more 
than  prospects. 

Gold  Camp  (Black  Mountain),  which  lies  on  the  east  side  of 
the  mountain  range,  some  ten  or  twelve  miles  from  the  Organ 
postoffice,  belongs  to  the  Organ  mining  district  also.  This 
section  was  first  prospected  about  1883  by  Pat  Breen,  John 
and  Henry  Foy  and  others.  The  geology  of  this  camp  is 
entirely  different  from  that  of  the  Organ  side;  since  it  lies  at 
or  near  the  great  fault  line  which  runs  along  the  east  side  of 
the  range,  extending  from  near  El  Paso,  north  to  the  northern 
terminus  of  the  San  Andreas. 

Granitic  and  metamorphic  rocks  are  traversed  at  intervals 
by  quartz-porphyry  dikes.  These  dikes  have  influenced  the 
segregation  of  gold  along  the  planes  of  contact.  Some  copper 
and  silver  are  also  found  in  association  with  the  gold.  Taken 
as  a  whole  the  region  of  Black  mountain  may  be  considered 
one  of  low  grade  gold  ore. 

The  Mountain  Chief  was  the  first  property  located  and 
possesses  considerable  merit.  The  most  extensively  develop- 
ed property  is  the  Mormon  mine;  the  Dona  Dora  is  also  being 
developed  and  looks  well.  Lying  between  Black  Mountain 
and  Mineral  Hill  is  the  Oriental  lode.  In  Texas  Canyon  to 
the  south  is  the  Mascot  and  other  claims.  To  the  north  of 
Gold  Camp  about  eight  miles  is  Bear  Canyon,  which  contains 
some  promising  lead  prospects.  Some  of  these  lead  prospects 
are  high  up  in  the  mountain  and  would  need  an  aerial  tramway 
to  properly  handle  the  ore.  The  Pharmacy  and  Dona  Dora 
are  prospects  which  would  deserve  notice,  as  they  are  acces- 
sible and  lie  centrally  in  Gold  Camp. 

It  seems  that  plenty  of  water  can  be  developed  in  this 
region;  transportation  being  the  greatest  drawback. 

West  of  the  Organ  postoffice  about  twelve  miles  and  at  an 
equal  distance  north  of  Las  Cruces  are  situated  the  Dona  Ana 


80  NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS. 

mountains.  Some  prospecting  has  been  carried  on  at  inter- 
vals in  this  little  group  of  isolated  peaks,  but  nothing  of  value 
has  yet  been  found.  Although  many  surface  indications  of 
minerals  may  be  seen  at  various  points.  It  would,  therefore, 
not  be  surprising  to  hear  of  some  bona  fide  discoveries  made 
in  that  section  at  any  time. 

Hembrillo  District. 

The  Hembrillo  district  lies  in  the  southern  part  of  the  San 
Andreas  range,  north  of  Organ  in  the  northeastern  part  of 
Dona  Ana  county;  to  the  east  are  the  gypsum  hills  in  Otero 
county. 

This  section  of  the  San  Andreas  mountains  is  identically 
as  the  region  further  to  the  north  as  described  under  the 
chapter  of  the  districts  of  the  Sierra  Oscura,  and  San  An- 
dreas ranges.  In  a  majority  of  cases  the  veins  are  contacts, 
lying  between  lime  and  porphyry. 

Copper  glance  appears  to  be  the  principal  ore  of  this  dis- 
trict; quite  often  fair  values  in  gold,  silver  and  lead  are  en- 
countered. Really  but  little  development  has  ever  been  done 
and  it  is  not  possible  yet  to  determine  the  worth  of  this 
region. 

The  Base  group,  a  lead  property  and  belonging  to  the  New 
Mexico  Lead  Company  is  the  best  known  and  developed. 
Another  group  known  as  the  Little  Monte  is  being  developed 
by  Capt.  Thomas  Brannigan  of  Las  Cruces;  this  property  is 
copper  and  gold. 

The  Planet  Mars  and  two  other  groups  are  copper  bearing 
and  belong  to  Major  Llewellyn,  Governor  Ofcero  and  others 


CHAPTER  XII. 


LAS  ANIMAS  (Hillsboro)  DISTRICT. 

It  was  on  the  20th  day  of  April  in  1877  that  gold  was  prac- 
tically discovered  at  Hillsboro  by  Dan  Dugan  and  Dave  Stitzel, 
who  were  prospecting  at  that  time  on  the  east  side  of  the 
Mimbres  range.  When  crossing  over  what  is  now  the  Op- 
portunity mine  on  that  day  in  the  Las  Animas  district,  some 
float  was  picked  up  which  Dugan  pronounced  "no  good,"  say- 
ing "anyone  ought  to  know  that  such  a  formation  as  this 
carries  no  mineral.*'  Stitzel,  notwithstanding,  put  a  few 
small  pieces  in  his  pocket  and  carried  them  to  an  old  quartz 
mill  on  the  Mimbres  river  where  he  had  them  assayed.  To 
the  great  surprise  of  the  two  prospectors,  the  ore  ran  $160.00 
in  gold  per  ton. 

About  one  month  later  on  May  13th,  they  came  back  and 
located  the  Opportunity  and  Ready  Pay  mines. 

Under  adverse  circumstances  they  managed  to  mine  and 
hauled  over  live  tons  of  ore  to  the  Mimbres  mill,  which  netted 
them  $400.  In  August  of  the  same  year,  the  first  house  was 
built  and  the  town  of  Hillsboro,  now  in  Sierra  county,  started. 

The  famous  Rattlesnake  (more  commonly  called  the  Snake) 
mine  was  discovered  by  Frank  Pitcher  and  Dan  Dugan  in 
June,  1877.  This  discovery  was  accidental,  and  was  made  by 
those  two  prospectors  when  returning  to  their  camp  in  Ready 
Pay  gulch,  having  sat  down  under  a  clump  of  oak  bushes  to 
rest,  striking  and  breaking  loose  rock  which  lay  about  them 
as  they  talked,  free  gold  was  found  in  some  of  the  broken 
fragments.  Owing  to  the  fact  that  they  had  just  killed  a 
large  rattlesnake  while  resting  at  that  spot,  it  was  decided  to 
mime  the  claim  the  "Rattlesnake"  lode. 

The  news  of  the  new  gold  district  soon  spread,  and  by  fall 
quite  a  population  had  gathered  about  Hillsboro. 

In  November,  1877,  placer  gold  was  first  found  in  the  dis- 
trict by  Hank  Dorsey  in  the  Snake  and  Wicks  gulches.  Ad- 
joining gulches  were  afterward  prospected  and  the  discov- 


82  NEW    MEXICO   MINES  AND   MINERALS. 

eries  soon  spread  and  embraced  the  rich  diggings  on  and 
about  Slap-jack  hill. 

During  the  winter  of  1877-78,  a  mine  operator  by  the  name 
George  Wells  turned  into  the  stores  and  saloons  of  Hillsboro 
$90,000  in  gold  dust  and  nuggets  which  he  had  taken  from 
Wicks  gulch. 

The  first  ore  taken  out  of  the  camp,  excepting  the  five  tons 
that  were  hauled  to  the  Mimbres  mill,  was  worked  in  arras- 
tras,  built  in  what  is  now  Mattie  Avenue,  Hillsboro,  in  front 
of  the  Stage  stable,  at  the  end  of  the  Stage  line  now  oper- 
ating between  Lake  Valley  and  Hillsboro. 

A  Mr.  Fresh  built  two  steam  arrastras  in  the  fall  of  1877; 
in  the  fall  of  the  following  year,  and  in  partnership  with  a 
Mr.  Wicks,  the  two  erected  a  10-stamp  mill  on  the  old  arras- 
tra  site,  which  may  be  seen  at  the  present  time. 

The  country  around  Hillsboro  was,  in  the  early  days,  a 
part  of  Socorro  county;  later,  all  land  situated  within  a  radius 
of  two  and  one-half  miles  of  Hillsboro  was  attached  to  Dona 
Ana  county.  In  April  1884,  Sierra  county  was  organized  by 
an  Act  of  the  Legislature  in  1883,  the  preceding  year,  and 
Hillsboro  was  made,  and  has  since  been,  the  county  seat. 

Of  the  old  timers  Dan  Dugan  died  in  1884;  Dave  Stitzel  is 
living  in  Hillsboro,  and  whom  the  writer  had  the  pleasure  of 
meeting;  Hank  Dorsey  resides  in  Silver  City  and  is  now 
seventy  years  old,  and  who  still  expects  to  make  another 
fortune  in  mining;  George  Wells  has  drifted  away  from  the 
scenes  of  his  early  mining  operations  and  is  lost  to  the  now 
few,  old  time  prospectors,  who  yet  remain  in  New  Mexico. 

Such  is  the  brief  history  of  the  discovery  of  gold  in  the 
Las  Animas  mining  district  at  Hillsboro. 

Andesites  trachytes  and  intrusive  diorites,  seem  to  be  the 
principal  eruptive  rocks  of  the  district;  although  a  high, 
narrow,  isolated  ridge,  separating  the  town  on  the  north 
from  the  mines,  is  covered  with  basalt  as  well  as  some  other 
patches,  as  observed  in  the  vicinity  of  the  Opportunity  mine. 

Much  birds-eye  porphyry  is  found  throughout  the  entire 
district  and  the  mineralization  seems  due  to  some  sort  of 
connection  with  the  same.  Most  of  the  veins  are  well  defined 
and  at  times  attain  considerable  width.  The  general  strike 
of  the  lodes  seems  to  converge  in  the  direction  of  Las  Anima's 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS.  83 

peak.  All  of  the  principal  properties,  with  but  few  exceptions, 
are  located  on  a  ridge  covering  the  parallel  or  radial  veins  as 
heretofore  alluded. 

Beginning  at  the  west  end  of  the  ridge  the  principal  claims 
occur  in  the  following  order,  viz: 

Golden  Era,  Empire,  Garfield  and  Butler,  Richmond,  El- 
dorado, Bonanza,  Morning  Star,  Snake,  Moccasin,  Oppor- 
tunity, Ready  Pay  and  the  Wicks.  The  rich  placers  of  Wicks 
gulch,  and  around  Slap-jack  hill  evidently  resulted  from 
erosion  of  the  lodes  of  the  above  mentioned  claims.  The 
erosion  must  have  been  very  great,  as  the  present  topography 
of  the  country  would  indicate,  and  the  enormous  beds  of 
gravel  and  debris  in  the  direction  of  the  Rio  Grande  would 
suggest. 

Beside  gold,  there  are  found  some  copper  and  lead  ores 
carrying  good  values;  also,  the  beautiful  mineral  endlichite 
is  found  on  the  eastern  slope  of  the  district. 

This  latter  deposit  of  rare  mineral  is  in  a  contact-fissure, 
with  a  lime  foot  wall  and  a  shale  hanging  wall.  The  contact 
is  irregular,  though  very  strong,  extending  a  distance  of 
nearly  4,000  feet. 

It  is  said  that  this  is  the  largest  body  of  Vanadium  ore 
known  in  the  world.  The  property  is  known  as  the  S.  J. 
Macy  lode. 

The  Prosper,  Cincinnati,  Mascot,  Mining  Company,  Lupey, 
Summit,  American,  Virginia,  Sherman  group,  Rubicon  group, 
Whaleback  and  Perche  groups,  Eureka,  Bob- tail,  Bull-of-the- 
Woods,  Catherine,  Lilliput,  Prince  Henry,  etc.,  are  other 
properties  that  are  being  developed.  A  number  of  placer 
properties  are  being  worked  in  a  small  way,  generally  by 
Mexicans,  which  produce  on  an  average  of  $450  per  month. 

Some  seven  or  eight  miles  further  to  the  north  and  west  is 
the  Andrews  postoffice,  where  the  Golden  Rule  group  of 
mines  is  located,  and  which  has  had  considerable  produc- 
tion. Nearby  are  the  Chance  group,  Emperor  group,  Little 
Nell  group,  '97  and  *9«  mines. 

The  estimated  production  of  the  camp  to  January  1, 1904, 
including  both  placer  and  lode  claims  is  placed  at  §6,750,000, 
principally  gold. 


84  NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS. 

Pittsburg   District. 

This  district  lies  immediately  on  the  east  side  of  the  Rio 
Grande  and  embraces  the  Sierra  de  los  Caballos,  in  Sierra 
county,  northwest  of  Rincon. 

For  many  years  the  attention  of  prospectors  and  capitalists 
has  been  periodically  attracted  to  the  district,  chiefly  due  to 
the  existence  of  lead  and  copper  found  in  many  localities  of 
the  range. 

Not  until  recently  did  the  district  come  prominently  be- 
fore the  public,  when  a  great  rush  to  the  newly  discovered 
placer  fields  was  made. 

Some  two  years  prior  to  the  knowledge  of  the  public  of 
these  gold  fields,  a  Mexican  by  the  name  of  Encarnacion 
Silva,  made  periodical  visits  to  Hillsboro,  some  twenty-five 
miles  away,  and  disposed  of  his  gold  dust  and  nuggets,  and 
who  persistently  refused  to  disclose  the  locality  from  whence 
his  source  of  wealth  came. 

On  one  visit,  however,  to  Hillsboro,  this  cunning  native, 
due  to  an  over  indulgence  in  intoxicants,  became  talkative 
and  the  secret  of  his  find  became  known;  on  this  latter  oc- 
casion he  was  accompanied  by  his  cousin,  Bernardo  Silva, 
whom  he  had  taken  into  his  confidence.  This  was  on  Sunday 
night,  November  22,  1903,  when  several  persons  started  at 
once  and  rode  through  to  the  diggings  in  the  night  and  were 
on  the  ground  making  locations  early  the  following  morning. 
It  was  not  until  this  same  morning  of  the  23rd  that  the  news 
became  generally  known  in  Hillsboro,  when  a  general  stam- 
pede and  exodus  of  the  population  of  the  village  resulted. 
Everything  partook  of  the  nature  of  an  old  fashion  mining 
boom,  similar  to  that  in  the  early  days. 

Excitement  ran  very  high  and  it  was  claimed  that  the  Dis- 
trict Court,  then  in  session  at  Hillsboro,  adjourned  and  left 
for  the  golden  Eldorado. 

The  writer  was  on  the  ground,  the  middle  part  of  the  follow- 
ing week  representing  Albuquerque  men,  and  on  Saturday 
night  December  8th,  by  the  flame  of  the  camp  fire,  was  unani- 
mously elected  chairman  to  preside  over  the  deliberations  of 
that  unique  body  of  fortune  hunters.  From  a  spectacular 
standpoint,  in  which  Winchesters  and  six  shooters  were  in 
evidence,  some  of  the  crowd  standing  and  others  seated  on 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES    AND   MINERALS. 


85 


boxes  and  empty  beer  kegs,  the  proceedings  were  rendered 
most  impressive.  Never  was  a  more  orderly  or  harmonious 
meeting  held;  every  motion  put  and  seconded  was  unanimous- 
ly carried  with  a  Stentorian  shout  coming  from  a  thousand 
throats  "I,''  making  the  very  mountains  reverberate  with  the 


Fig.  15-BLOWING  GOLD  FROM  SAND.     Photographed  by  F.  A.  Jones, 

December,    19O3. 

(The  man  to  the  nght  in  the  picture,  who  is  looking  up,  is  Encarnacion  Silva,  the 
discoverer  of  gold  in  Apache  canyon.) 

sound,  and  which  was  echoed  back  in  turn  to  the  great  valley 
of  the  Rio  Grande  from  whence  it  came. 

The  placers  seem  to  be  confined  to  or  near  the  Apache 
canyon  and  to  the  northern  branches  of  the  same.  Only  two 
gulches  to  the  present  time,  May  1,  1904,  have  been  found 


<J  W 
W  Q 


Pu  O 

^S 

Sw 


NEW    MEXICO   MINES   AND    MINERALS.  S7 

where  gold  exists  in  paying  quantities;  these  are  known  as 
the  Silva  and  Trujillo  gulches,  respectively.  The  former 
gulch  is  where  Silva  originally  discovered  the  gold;  the  latter 
gulch  was  found  to  contain  gold  at  the  beginning  of  the 
excitement. 

The  area  of  the  pay  gravel  seems  rather  circumscribed, 
although  development  may  materially  enlarge  the  field. 

All  the  gold  won  from  the  sand  and  gravel  at  the  time  the 
writer  visited  the  district,  was  done  by  means  of  blowing 
through  a  pipe-stem  or  small  tube  in  the  loose  sand  which 
covered  bed  rock,  exposing  the  nuggets  and  particles  of  gold, 
that  were  afterward  picked  up  with  the  fingers,  or  a  small 
stick,  moistened  with  the  mouth  at  the  end. 

During  the  following  spring  a  man  by  the  name  of  H.  O. 
Clark,  from  San  Francisco,  introduced  a  new  gold  washer 
which  seems  to  be  successful,  handling  about  thirty  tons  of 
gravel  per  day.  The  new  machine  consists  of  a  cylinder, 
three  feet  long  and  eighteen  inches  in  diameter,  surrounded 
by  a  revolving  screen.  There  is  a  half  circle  bottom  contain- 
ing riffles  about  one-half  inch  deep  and  one  inch  in  width  in 
which  the  dirt  drops  after  passing  through  the  screen.  The 
gravel  that  falls  into  the  riffles  is  constantly  agitated  by  steel 
fingers  or  wormers  that  separate  the  gold  from  the  dirt.  The 
values,  it  is  said,  are  saved  so  closely  that  expert  panners 
are  unable  to  produce  any  colors  from  the  tailings. 

A  transverse  fault  nearly  at  right  angles  to  the  profound 
fault  which  formed  the  Rio  Grande  basin,  seems  to  have 
been  due  to  a  fissure  from  which  a  great  flow  or  dike  of 
rhyolite  had  its  egress  and  which  gave  Apache  can3Ton  its 
present  trend. 

Intimately  connected  with  this  rhyolite  member  at  and 
along  its  contact,  appears  to  be  the  source  of  the  gold. 

This  disturbance  must  have  taken  place  at  the  beginning 
of  the  pleistocene,  since  the  Tertiary  gravel  beds  are  tilted 
and  have  the  same  slope  as  the  older  series  of  rocks  in  the 
canyon;  the  throw  must  have  been  2,000. 

It  is  evident  that  the  gold  did  not  come  far  as  it  is  quite 
fiaky;  in  one  instance  the  writer  saw  a  Hake  that  had  been 
rolled  into  a  cornet,  by  some  natural  process. 

The  Marion  mine  is  perhaps  the  most  noted  lode  claim:  it 


88  NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS. 

lies  in  the  north  end  of  the  district.  This  property  is  a  cop- 
per proposition  and  has  been  a  producer  for  several  years. 
It  is  opened  by  a  tunnel  700  feet  long;  the  ore  is  chalcopyrite 
and  chalcocite.  To  the  north  end  of  the  district  are  situated 
the  Rosa  Lee  and  the  Napoleon  claims,  two  parallel  lodes, 
which  are  quite  promising. 

Their  veins  have  a  strike  approximately  east  and  west  and 
stand  almost  perpendicular.  They  are  true  fissures  and 
breakthrough  the  overlying  carboniferous  limestones;  the 
gangue  is  a  white  quartz  in  which  the  ore  occurs.  Some 
beautiful  cubical  crystals  of  wulfenite  are  associated  with  the 
ore  and  adhered  to  the  walls.  The  Washington  group,  Othelia 
and  lola  are  favorable  copper  prospects  having  a  lime  contact 
and  are  only  partially  developed. 

At  the  south  end  of  the  district  a  short  distance  north  of 
Rincon  are  some  deposits  of  manganese. 

The  ore  occurs  as  psilomelane,  and  is  of  very  high  grade; 
the  extent  of  the  deposit  has  never  been  fully  exploited. 

Some  coal  measures  exist  at  and  beyond  the  northeast  end 
of  the  district,  which  have  never  been  developed;  much  fault- 
ing seems  to  have  occurred,  which  would  render  the  beds 
expensive  to  work,  provided  the  vein  is  sufficiently  thick. 

The  mineralization  of  the  Sierra  de  los  Caballos,  extends 
into  the  Sierra  Fra  Cristobal  range  immediately  to  the  north, 
where  but  little  prospecting  in  this  latter  range  has  ever 
been  done. 

Iron  Reef  District. 

This  district  lies  on  the  west  side  of  the  Rio  Grande  in  the 
vicinity  of  Palomas  hot  springs,  in  Sierra  county. 

The  two  principal  properties  here  are  the  Iron  Reef  and 
Meridian. 

Very  little  is  doing  in  the  district  at  the  present  writing. 
The  ore  is  principally  lead-silver;  some  gold  is  also  found  in 
the  associated  ores  of  the  district. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 


LAKE  VALLEY  DISTRICT. 

One  of  the  most  remarkable  bodies  of  silver  ore  ever  en- 
countered in  New  Mexico,  was  the  Lake  Valley  deposit. 

In  fact,  the  Bridal  Chamber  ore  body  has  never  been 
equaled  in  richness  by  any  silver  mine  in  the  world. 

The  Lake  Valley  mines  wrere  discovered  by  George  W. 
Lufkin,  a  cowboy  prospector,  in  August,  1878,  who  at  that 
time  had  headquarters  at  Hillsboro. 

The  discovery  was  purely  accidental;  the  cowboy  in  round 
of  duty,  got  off  his  horse  to  tighten  the  girth  of  his  saddle 
and  noticed  a  peculiar  piece  of  stone,  which  he  picked  up  and 
was  surprised  at  its  heft.  He  had  it  assayed  on  suspicion 
that  it  might  be  ore. 

To  his  great  astonishment,  the  piece  of  float  ran  several 
thousand  ounces  of  silver  to  the  ton.  This  piece  of  float  was 
found  near  where  the  Bridal  Chamber  was  afterwards 
opened  up. 

George  W.  Lufkin  took  in  a  partner  by  the  name  of  Chris 
Watson;  these  two  gentleman  (both  now  dead)  realized  but 
little  out  of  their  find. 

It  is  claimed  that  Lufkin  received  only  §10.50  for  his  share; 
the  property  soon  passing  into  other  hands. 

The  fame  of  this  rich  discovery  soon  spread  and  a  rush  for 
the  new  strike  was  made  by  every  class  of  people. 

After  some  development  was  done  on  different  locations, 
three  companies  absorbed  all  the  best  and  promising  claims. 

Those  companies  were  the  Sierra  Grande,  capitalized  at 
si'.o ,K),000;  the  Sierra  Bella,  capitalized  at  $1,000,000;  and  the 
Sierra  Apache,  capitalized  at  $1,000,000;  and  all  composed 
principally  of  Philadelphia  capitalists. 

Operations  of  the  three  companies  were  conducted  for 
several  years  under  the  management  of  the  Sierra  Grande 
Company  and  it  was  under  this  management  that  the  famous 
Bridal  Chamber  was  found.  A  blacksmith  by  the  name  of 


90  NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS. 

John  Leavitt  (now  dead)  who  had  a  lease  on  that  particular 
property,  discovered  the  Bridal  Chamber  and  sold  out  his 
lease  to  the  company  for  a  few  thousand  dollars. 

It  was  on  the  very  day  of  the  discovery  of  this  remarkable 
silver  deposit — the  Bridal  Chamber — that  the  General  Man- 
ager George  Daly  was  killed  by  the  Apache  Indians  about 
six  miles  out  from  camp  in  the  early  eighties. 

Dr.  F.  M.  Endlich,  after  whom  the  rare  mineral  Endlichite 
took  its  name,  first  exploited  this  property.  The  managers 
of  the  property  under  the  old  organization,  after  the  death  of 
George  Daly,  were:  Walter  A.  Hadley,  Ellis  Clark.  Robert 
Eastburn  and  Henry  Schmidt. 

Professor  Ellis  Clark  who  had  charge  of  the  mines  a  number 
of  years,  wrote  a  valuable  paper  on  this  famous  property 
which  was  read  at  the  Virginia  Beach  meeting,  February , 
1894,  before  the  American  Institute  of  Mining  Engineers. 

The  Lake  Valley  district  contains  three  characteristic 
eruptive  formations,  viz:  Rhyolite,  porphyrite  and  a  horn- 
blende-andesite.  These  three  eruptives  are  within  a  few 
hundred  feet  of  where  the  principal  ore  bodies  were  found. 
In  fact,  the  porphyrite  lay  immediately  on  much  of  the  rich 
deposits,  including  the  Bridal  Chamber. 

The  rhyolitic  flow  is  perhaps  the  latest  type  of  eruptives  in 
the  district,  and  composes  what  is  locally  known  as  porphyry 
hill  which  lies  to  the  southwest  of  the  main  works. 

Monument  Peak  which  is  due  east  of  the  mines  is  composed 
of  andesite.  The  total  approximated  thickness  of  the  sedi- 
mentary formations  at  the  Lake  Valley  mines  is  about  1,000 
feet. 

The  lowest  of  the  series  is  composed  of  quartzite  and  lime- 
stone and  regarded  as  Silurian.  Then  comes  black  and  green 
shales,  nodular  limestone,  blue  limestone  and  crinoidal  lime- 
stone; this  latter  limestone  is  about  200  feet  in  thickness  and 
represents  nearly  half  the  thickness  of  the  lower  Carbon- 
iferous at  this  point.  The  blue  limestone  is  the  receptacle  in 
which  the  ore  bodies  have  occurred. 

The  ore  bodies  are  something  similar  to  those  of  Leadville 
on  account  of  their  peculiarity  of  deposit  in  the  nearly 
horizontal  formations  of  limestone.  Yet,  the  deposits  can 
not  be  termed  of  blanket  form,  since  they  occur  in  beds  or 


NEW    MEXICO    MINKS   AND    MINERALS.  91 

troughs  which  are  due  to  the  erosion  of  the  blue  limestone. 
The  overhead  or  hanging  wall  formation  is  either  a  porphy  rite 
or  the  crinoidal  limestone. 

The  quartzite  of  the  district  extends  north  into  the  Hills- 
boro  mining  camp,  about  eighteen  miles  distant. 

There  have  been  several  theories  propounded  concerning 
the  origin  of  this  ore;  but  it  is  more  than  probable  that  the 
leaching  out  of  the  metallic  sulphides  and  chlorides  of  silver 
from  the  porphyritic  sheet  is  the  true  source. 

The  ore  is  usually  accompanied  with  quite  a  percentage  of 
manganese  and  iron;  and  only  occasionally  is  galena  present. 

A  variety  of  silver  and  other  ores  have  been  found  in  these 
mines;  such  as cerargy rite,  stephanite,  descloizite,  vanadinite, 
endlichite,proustite,etc.  Magnificent  specimens  of  pyrolusite 
showing  the  crystallization  have  also  been  taken  out. 

Approximately,  the  different  workings  have  yielded: 

Ozs.  of  Silver 

Bridal  Chamber ..    .  2,500,000 

Thirty  Stope 1,000,000 

Emporia  Incline 200,000 

Bunk-house MO, 000 

Bella  Chute  500,000 

Twenty-five  Cut 200,000 

Apache  and  all  others 300,000 


Total 5.000,000 

These  mines  were  operated  for  a  period  of  about  fifteen 
years  by  the  Sierra  Grande  Company,  closing  down  in 
August,  1893. 

In  April,  1900,  the  the  entire  property  was  sold  at  a  private 
sale  to  L.  G.  Fisher  of  New  York  City,  who  had  been  associat- 
ed with  the  original  companies  and  who  organized  in  1901  the 
Lake  Valley  Mines  Company. 

New  development  began  a  little  later  on  under  the  direction 
of  John  Hays  Hammond,  consulting  engineer,  with  E.  H. 
Bickford,  general  manager. 

Considerable  ore  has  been  taken  out  and  shipped  under 
this  new  organization.  The  ore  lies  well  down  in  the  blue 
limestone,  as  was  observed  recently  by  the  writer,  and  is  of 
a  mangano-ferruginous  character,  running  low  in  silver 
values.  This  region  is  limited  in  extent,  in  so  far  as  its 


92  NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS. 

mineralization  is  concerned.  Every  part  of  the  district 
adjacent  to  the  principal  Lake  Valley  mines  is  covered  by 
locations  and  the  annual  assessments  regularly  done. 

A  few  of  the  more  favorable  locations  are  the  Stone  Cabin, 
Miles  Standish,  Teddy  group  and  the  Centennial  State  group. 

Macho  District. 

To  the  south  of  Lake  Valley  district  in  Sierra  county,  on 
and  near  Macho  creek,  several  prospects  exist  in  what  is 
known  as  the  Macho  district. 

Lead  and  silver  are  the  principal  minerals;  although,  it  is 
probable  that  deposits  of  manganese  of  considerable  import- 
ance may  be  developed.  The  geological  characteristics  here 
are  much  the  same  as  at  Lake  Valley.  The  underlying  lime- 
stones are  entirely  covered  by  vast  sheets  of  andesites  and 
trachytes,  through  which  the  principal  veins  outcrop.  Abund- 
ance of  water  exists  near  the  surface  which  can  be  developed 
for  mining  purposes.  The  Dude  mine  is  more  developed 
than  the  others  at  this  point.  The  vein  is  a  true  fissure  with 
a  gangue  of  flinty  quartz  which  carries  sulphides  and  some 
carbonates  of  lead,  with  a  little  silver  and  gold. 

Lying  immediately  across  the  draw  to  the  north  of  the 
Dude  is  the  Hudson  group  of  lead  properties.  This  latter 
property  is,  indeed,  very  promising  and  by  proper  develop- 
ment would  make  a  good  producer.  Cerussite  predominates, 
which  would  point  to  the  association  of  this  mineral  with  the 
lime  formations  below.  Many  beautiful  crystals  of  wulf enite 
are  mingled  with  the  vein  matter. 

About  eight  hundred  feet  to  the  west  of  the  Dude  is  the 
Jim  Crow  manganese  location,  which  was  made  in  April,  1903, 
by  S.  W.  Sanders,  and  the  writer,  F.  A.  Jones.  Very  little 
work  has  been  done  on  the  property,  yet  the  indications  point 
to  quite  a  deposit  of  manganese  when  properly  developed; 
the  ore  is  pyrolusite,  associated  with  calc-spar.  The  vein 
breaks  through  a  decomposed  andesite  covering. 

Bromide  No.  i.   (Tierra  Blanca)  District. 

This  mining  section  of  Sierra  county,  NewT  Mexico,  took  its 
name  from  the  white  capped  hills  or  low  mountains  which 
are  covered  by  a  rhyolite  flow7,  signifying  white  earth;  it  lies 


NEW    MEXICO   MINES   AND   MINERALS. 


93 


to  the  northwest  of  Lake  Valley  about  fifteen  miles,  in  the  foot 
hills  on  the  eastern  slope  of  the  Mimbres  range  of  mountains. 
The  name  of  the  district  proper  was  given  it  due  to  some 
high  grade  silver  bromide  found  there  in  the  early  eighties 
of  the  past  century. 


Fig.  17— LOG  CABIN  MINE,  photographed  by  F.  A.  Jones,  Dec.,  19O3. 

The  ore  and  its  occurrence  here  is  a  counterpart  of  what  is 
found  about  Kingston,  some  ten  miles  to  the  northwest. 

High  grade  chlorides  and  sulphides  of  silver,  with  frequent 
occurrence  of  native  silver,  found  in  and  near  the  contact  of 
lime  and  prophyry  or  lime  and  shale,  represent  the  prevailing 
characteristic  mineralization  of  the  district. 


94  NEW    MEXICO   MINES   AND   MINERALS. 

Occasionally  pockets  carrying  phenomenally  high  values  in 
gold  are  encountered;  these  appear  to  be  always  near  or  at 
the  surface,  in  association  with  quartzite  and  porphyry. 

This  latter  feature  was  the  case  at  the  Log  Cabin  mine 
where  many  thousands  of  dollars  in  gold  were  taken  out  at 
the  grass  roots,  not  exceeding  a  depth  of  ten  feet. 

The  remarks  applying  to  the  camp  of  Kingston,  concern- 
ing the  geology  of  the  ore  deposits  there  will  in  a  general  way 
apply  here. 

Near  the  head  of  Trujillo  creek  is  the  most  prominent 
producing  mine  of  the  district— the  Lookout.  The  lode  is  a 
contact  between  limestone  and  granite-porphyry  and  carries 
sylvanite. 

Some  shipments  have  proven  to  be  phenomenally  rich  in 
gold  and  silver  values.  Most  of  this  high  grade  ore  came 
from  a  comparatively  superficial  depth.  The  property 
belongs  to  two  of  the  old  timers,  Col.  Parker  and  J.  M. 
Webster. 

The  Log  Cabin  mine  is  also,  one  of  the  best  known  proper- 
ties in  Sierra  county  and  is  at  present  producing;  although, 
not  however,  to  the  extent  that  it  formerly  did. 

Many  other  properties  of  the  district  are  fairly  well  develop- 
ed; among  which  the  Tierra  Blanca  group,  the  Midnight  and 
the  Bell  are  the  most  prominent. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

BLACK   RANGE  Nos.   i  AND  2,   DISTRICTS. 

All  that  portion  of  the  country  on  the  east  slope  of  the 
Black  Range  of  mountains  lying  between  Kingston  on  the 
south  and  Graf  ton  to  the  north,  was  in  the  early  days  denom- 
inated as  the  Black  Range  mining  district.  This  large 
area,  fifty  miles  north  and  south  and  from  ten  to  twenty 
miles  east  and  west,  embraced  a  number  of  mining  camps 
and  districts;  all  of  which  are  now  usually  spoken  of  as  the 
Black  Range. 

The  term  "Black  Range''  was  adopted  by  the  early  ex- 
plorers from  the  fact  that  these  lofty  mountains,  when  view- 
ed from  a  distance,  presented  a  very  dark  or  black  appear- 
ance, due  to  the  heavy  growth  of  pinon  and  pine  timber 
which  covers  the  surface. 

Many  traditions,  superstitions  and  perils  pertaining  to 
pioneer  life  in  the  great  southwest,  are  historically  inter- 
woven in  a  woof  inseparable  from  the  black  band  which  im- 
presses its  inky  form  in  the  distant  horizon. 

Kingston  Camp. 

The  excitement  about  Hillsboro  in  its  early  days  led  to  the 
discovery  of  silver  in  the  Kingston  camp.  There  were  two 
parties  of  prospectors,  who  first  entered  the  Black  Range 
district  and  who  accidentally  met  at  the  present  site  of 
Kingston;  this  was  in  the  latter  part  of  October,  1880.  Bob 
Forbes,  Frank  Pitcher,  Dan  Cameron,  Jim  W.  Wilson  and 
H.  W.  Elliott  constituted  the  first  party;  the  second  party 
was  composed  of  Messrs.  Chapman,  Heard  and  Phillips.  To 
the  honor  of  the  second  party  mentioned,  belongs  the  dis- 
covery of  silver  in  the  Black  Range  district  at  the  Kingston 
camp. 

The  Iron  King  and  Empire  were  the  two  first  locations  and 
were  made  by  Phillips  and  Elliott;  they  afterward  cast  lots 
to  determine  which  claim  each  should  take.  Phillips  drew 
the  Empire,  consequently  the  Iron  King  fell  to  Elliott. 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES  AND    MINERALS. 

Next  located  was  the  Eclipse  by  the  Phillips  party;  then 
the  Brush  Heap  by  a  late  arrival  having  the  name  of  Johnson, 
and  afterward  the  Blackeyed  Susan  by  Forbes  and  Elliott. 

Dan  Dugan,  famous  as  one  of  the  original  discoverers  of 
gold  at  Hills boro,  with  three  partners  located  the  Lady 
Franklin,  the  Gray  Horse  and  others.  In  the  spring  of  1881 
the  mining  district  was  organized  and  named  the  Black 
Range. 

Several  of  the  old  timers  who  landed  in  the  camp  about  the 
time  the  district  was  organized,  still  reside  there.  Col. 
John  Logan  and  Col.  A.  W.  Harris  in  the  spring  of  1881  (the 
latter  still  a  resident  of  the  camp)  have  the  distinction  of  be- 
ing the  first  persons  who  rode  into  Kingston  in  a  vehicle  (an 
old  ambulance);  they  coming  from  Hillsboro,  found  it  neces- 
sary to  cut  away  the  brush  and  trees  at  numerous  places 
along  the  trail  in  order  that  their  ambulance  might  pass. 

It  was  at  Kingston  that  the  prospector  sallied  forth  a  poor 
man  in  the  morning,  returning  a  millionaire  in  the  afternoon 
for  he  had  "struck  it  rich".  Here  fortunes  grew  in  a  single 
day  to  vanish  as  quickly  by  games  of  chance,  under  the 
shadow  of  the  pines,  at  night.  The  clinking  of  glasses,  in 
drinking  to  the  health  and  good  luck  of  a  "pard"  and  the 
dizzy  whirl  in  the  dance  hall  under  the  flaring  and  flickering 
flames  of  pine  knots  and  tallow  candles,  were  vivid  scenes 
of  the  stirring  times  in  the  "good  old  days"  of  the  early 
eighties. 

The  central  axis  or  core  of  the  Black  Range  of  mountains 
extends  approximately  north  and  south  and  is  composed  of 
granites,  gneisses  and  quartzites,  flanked  wi^h  the  massive 
limestones  and  shales  of  the  Carboniferous  period. 

It  is  probable  that  some  of  the  lower  series  of  rocks  here, 
as  at  Lake  Valley  and  Sierra  Blanca,  may  belong  to  the 
Silurian  and  Devonian  systems.  The  sedimentaries  dip 
away  from  the  axis  of  the  range  on  either  side  at  an  angle  of 
about  25°.  Other  disturbances  occurred  subsequent  to  the 
primary  orogenic  upthrust  of  the  granite  core,  dislocating, 
warping,  cutting  and  partly  covering  the  great  sedimentary 
series  with  dikes  and  eruptive  sheets  of  porphyries.  The 
ore  deposits  of  Kingston  in  the  Black  Range,  lie  at  or  near 
the  contact  of  the  thick  Carboniferous  limestones  and  a  blue- 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS.  97 

black  shale.  Some  of  these  limestones  are  fossiliferous  to  a 
certain  extent,  indicating  their  geological  horizon;  the  shales 
are  several  hundred  feet  in  thickness.  These  stratifications 
dip  to  the  east  conformably  with  the  basal  quartzite.  Still 
farther  to  the  east  beyond  the  mineralized  zone  appear  sand- 
stones and  shales  of  a  later  period,  which  in  turn  disappear 
under  still  more  recent  rocks  of  an  eruptive  character. 

Usually  the  ore  deposits  occur  in  the  cavernous  receptacles 
previously  formed  in  the  limestone  and  rarely  in  the  true 
contact  itself. 

During  a  recent  visit  by  the  writer  to  the  Illinois  mine, 
which  is  a  typical  representation  of  the  camp,  examination 
bore  out  the  fact  that  wherever  any  connection  leading  from 
a  limestone  cavern  with  the  shale  contact,  even  though  it  be 
as  small  as  the  blade  of  a  knife,  mineralization  occurred;  on 
the  contrary  where  no  such  communication  with  the  contact 
was  found,  such  isolated  limestone  chambers  were  destitute 
of  ore  values.  This  rule  may  be  accepted  as  general  through- 
out the  Kingston  camp;  in  the  Bromide  (Tierra  Blanca)  dis- 
trict to  the  southeast,  and  in  the  Palomas  district  to  the 
north.  Had  the  mine  operators  observed  this  fact  and  fol- 
lowed the  contact  to  where  a  communication  into  the  lime- 
stone seemed  to  reach  and  then  to  have  drifted  on  this  open- 
ing, much  of  the  uncertainty  of  finding  an  ore  chamber  would 
have  been  eliminated.  On  the  contrary,  enormous  amounts 
of  money  were  expended  in  driving  long  tunnels  and  drifts 
at  random  in  the  solid  lime  rock,  without  any  results,  except- 
ing some  discoveries  made  by  sheer  chance. 

Concerning  the  theory  of  ore  deposits  in  this  camp  and  in 
other  parts  of  the  Black  Range,  there  seems  to  be  only  one 
tenable  exegesis,  and  that  is  deposition  by  descending 
waters.  Since  the  limestone  forms  the  foot  wall,  all  descend- 
ing waters  would  naturally  reach  it  as  it  penetrated  the 
shales  at  and  near  the  contact;  the  openings  in  the  limestone 
leading  to  the  cavernous  receptacles,  would  thus  be  in  a 
favorable  position  to  receive  the  mineralized  solutions.  Much 
of  the  gangue  matter  of  the  ore  is  evidently  derived  from  the 
overlying  shales,  and  has  been  deposited  in  the  descent  of 
the  water,  due  to  gravity.  The  largest  and  richest  ore 
bodies  have  been  found  near  the  surface.  A  recapitulation  of 


98  NEW    MEXICO   MINES  AND   MINERALS. 

these  observations  would  tend  to  show  that  deposition  took 
place  from  above,  by  the  action  of  circulating  descending 
waters,  which  became  mineralized  in  their  passage  through 
the  overlying  shales.  It,  therefore,  appears  more  than 
probable  that  the  source  of  the  silver  ores  of  the  Kingston 
camp,  and  many  other  places  in  the  Black  Range,  is  from 
the  black  shales  of  the  Carboniferous  rock  system. 

Kingston  camp  holds  the  record  of  New  Mexico  in  the 
production  of  silver.  From  the  time  of  its  discovery  to  Jan- 
uary 1,  1904,  the  estimated  production  is  $6,250,000,  nearly 
all  of  which  is  silver.  At  the  present  time  but  little  is  being 
done;  the  production  having  gradually  .declined,  since  the 
demonitization  of  silver,  until  it  is  practically  nothing  at  this 
writing. 

The  famous  producers  of  the  camp,  with  a  number  of  the. 
more  prominent  prospects,  are  here  given: 

Lady  Franklin,  Brush  Heap,  Illinois,  Saratoga.  Templar, 
Virginius,  Calamity  Jane,  Superior,  Monaska  group,  Black- 
eyed  Susan,  Andy  Johnson,  Old  Savage,  Keystone,  Comet, 
Black  Colt,  Bonanza  and  Teddy  group;  the  latter  locations 
were  made  recently. 

Palomas  (Hermosa)  District. 

This  camp  lies  due  north  of  the  camp  of  Kingston,  about 
twenty-five  miles,  and  took  its  name  from  the  Rio  Palomas, 
which  heads  in  that  vicinity.  The  general  contour  of  the 
country  is  pretty  much  the  same  as  that  about  Kingston,  and 
the  geological  structure  is  similarly  arranged. 

All  of  the  principal  mines  are  distributed  along  contact 
veins;  the  ores  carry  more  lead  than  those  in  the  Kingston 
camp.  Copper  values  also,  seem  to  increase  on  going  north 
from  Kingston  to  Graf  ton;  the  former  camp  is  practically 
destitute  of  copper  ores.  This  district  about  Hermosa,  had 
produced  about  $1,250,000,  principally  in  silver,  up  to  January 
1,  1904.  Very  little  activity  is  manifested  in  the  Palomas  dis- 
trict at  the  present  time,  May,  1904. 

The  principal  work  done  during  1903,  was  on  the  Palomas 
Chief,  which  in  the  early  days  was  a  famous  silver  producer; 
this  late  development  was  disappointing  to  the  lessees.  This 


NEW    MEXICO   MINES  AND   MINERALS.  99 

mine  alone,  is  said  to  have  had  a  production  of  nearly  half  a 
million  dollars  in  silver  to  its  credit. 

Next  to  thePalomas  Chief  the  Pelican  group  is  perhaps  the 
best  known  in  the  district,  and  has  a  record  of  production. 

Among  other  properties  which  are  favorably  and  well 
known  in  the  district  are  the  Philadelphia,  Antelope,  Ember- 
light,  the  UL,"  Atlantic  Cable,  American  Flag,  Flagstaff  and 
Ocean  Wave. 

Apache  District  No.   i. 

In  going  from  Hermosa  camp  due  north  twelve  miles,  the 
Apache  mining  district  is  found  which  embraces  the  mining 
camp  of  Chloride. 

Harry  Pye,  a  "mule  skinner,"  in  the  employ  of  the  United 
States,  in  1879,  is  conceded  to  be  the  discoverer  of  the  dis- 
trict. In  transporting  military  supplies  through  that  section 
of  the  country,  Pye  found  a  piece  of  float  in  the  canyon  near 
the  present  site  of  Chloride  postoffice,  which  he  had  assayed 
and  found  that  it  carried  high  values  in  silver.  After  fulfill- 
ing his  government  freight  contract,  with  a  small  party  of 
friends  he  proceeded  to  the  point  of  his  discovery,  and  located 
what  is  now  known  as  the  Pye  lode.  Due  to  the  silver  ore, 
the  camp  received  the  name  of  Chloride.  The  main  body  of 
prospectors  arrived  in  the  new  district  in  1880,  and  in  1881 
the  town  of  Fairview  started  a  few  miles  to  the  northeast. 

A  number  of  prospectors  and  settlers  were  killed  by  the 
Apache  Indians  in  1881,  among  them  was  Harry  Pye,  the 
discoverer  of  silver  in  the  district.  It  was  due  to  the  harass- 
ing Apaches  that  the  district  received  its  name. 

Part  of  the  district  lies  in  Sierra  county  and  the  remaining 
portion  in  Socorro  county. 

Overlying  the  basal  gneisses  and  quartzites,  are  the  thick 
Carboniferous  series  of  rock;  these  latter  beds  are  much 
broken  and  distorted  by  dikes  and  sheets  of  andesite  and 
trachyte  flows,  of  profound  magnitude. 

At  the  summit  of  the  range,  is  the  continental  divide,  a 
rhyolite  capping  is  observed,  in  which  no  ores  of  value  have 
yet  been  found.  Andesite-porphyries  seem  to  be  the  prevail- 
ing type  of  eruptive  rocks;  though  extensive  tongues  of 
trachytes  reach  out  and  cover  certain  localities. 


100  NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS. 

The  veins  are  usually  very  pronounced,  and  are  contacts, 
contact  fissures  and  true  fissures. 

Their  general  trend  is  north  and  south  or  parallel  to  the 
range,  dipping  to  the  east  at  an  angle  of  about  70°.  Silver, 
copper  and  gold  ores  are  the  prevailing  types.  Gold  values 
seem  to  predominate  in  the  north  end  of  the  district;  while  to 
the  south  end,  silver  and  copper  are  characteristic  features 
of  the  mineralization.  In  every  instance  the  gangue  matter 
is  quartz. 

In  the  vicinity  of  Chloride,  the  veins  are  usually  contacts 
between  lime  and  porphyry;  some  of  which  attain  a  very  great 
width.  The  values  on  the  whole  are  exceedingly  low. 

Within  sight  of  the  noted  pinnacle,  known  as  Victorious 
Outlook,  is  the  well  known  Silver  Monument  mine,  which 
has  a  record  of  production  of  $100,000  up  to  1893;  having  lain 
idle  up  to  1903,  when  work  was  resumed  in  a  small  way. 
Southwest  of  Chloride  a  few  miles  is  the  Colossal  mine  with 
about  $70,000  to  its  credit.  Nearby  are  the  U.  S.  Treasury 
group  (a  big  body  of  low  grade  ore),  the  St.  Cloud  group, 
Nana,  Midnight,  Readjuster,  Nordhausen  and  New  Era 
group.  This  latter  group  produced  a  few  cars  of  rather  a 
high  grade  bornite,  during  1902-3;  work  was  suspended  in 
1904. 

Near  Graf  ton  postofiice,  about  two  miles  by  wagon  road 
northwest  of  Chloride,  is  the  celebrated  Ivanho  property, 
formerly  owned  by  Col.  Robert  G.  Ingersoll  and  associates. 
The  Ashville,  Emporia,  Braxton  and  others,  were  formerly 
producers  in  the  early  days. 

To  the  north  of  Grafton  some  three  miles  are  the  Great 
Republic,  Kingston,  Triangle  and  Julia.  These  properties  are 
on  a  very  bold  outcrop  of  quartz  which  can  be  traced  for  sev- 
eral miles.  In  the  immediate  vicinity  of  the  Great  Republic 
may  be  mentioned  the  Chicago,  Minnehaha,  Crawford,  Olym- 
pia,  Sunrise,  Gold  Bug,  Camden  and  others  which  are  more 
or  less  developed. 

Promiscuously  throughout  the  district  are  a  number  of 
fair  prospects  such  as  the  Copper  Queen,  Bullion,  Alaska, 
Emporia,  Montezuma,  Golden  Chance,  Golden  Revenue 
group  and  the  Elephant  group. 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS.  101 

Limestone  (Cuchillo  Negro)  District. 

The  Cuchillo  Negro  range  of  low  mountains  or  hills  lie  on 
the  east  slope  of  the  Black  Range,  between  and  a  little  east 
of  a  line  drawn  connecting  Hermosa  with  Chloride.  On  ap- 
proaching the  Black  Range  from  the  east,  the  Cuchillos  pre- 
sent a  distinct  reddish  appearance  standing  out  in  bold  re- 
lief from  the  Black  Range  which  forms  the  background. 
The  Cuchillo  mountains  were  elevated  at  a  later  period  than 
that  of  the  Black  Range. 

The  Limestone  or  Cuchillo  mining  district  was  established 
immediately  after  the  first  year  of  excitement  at  Chloride; 
Edward's  camp  sprung  into  existence  then  and  many  claims 
were  staked  out  during  1882. 

Noted  among  the  older  locations  are  the  Black  Knife, 
German  and  Rifle  shot.  The  Dictator,  Vindicator,  Confidence 
and  Enterprise  groups  are  mainly  prospects  and  were  located 
later. 

It  is  in  this  range  that  a  large  deposit  of  iron  ore  exists, 
which  belongs  to  Thos.  Scales,  and  is  known  as  the  Iron 
Mountain  group.  Copper,  lead,  silver  and  zinc  are  the  prin- 
cipal metals  beside  the  iron. 

Sullivan's  Hole  District. 

This  district  or  locality  marks  the  terminus  of  the  Black 
Range  on  the  north.  Here  the  low  hills  imperceptibly  vanish 
into  the  great  plain  which  stretches  to  the  north. 

Large  bodies  of  low  grade  ore  exist  in  this  isolated  section, 
which  have  never  been  critically  examined  by  anyone,  owing 
to  the  great  distance  from  transportation. 


CHAPTER  XV. 


MINING     DISTRICT     OF     THE     SIERRA     OSCURA 
AND  SAN  ANDREAS  RANGES. 

Since  these  two  mountain  ranges  are  more  or  less  mineral- 
ized throughout  their  whole  extent  and  the  occurrence  of 
their  ores  appear  closely  related  genetically  and  in  their 
physical  constitution,  it  would  seem  proper  to  group  and 
discuss  the  various  mining  districts  and  camps  under  one 
general  heading. 

The  Sierra  Oscuraand  San  Andreas  ranges  are  very  similar 
in  appearance  to  the  Sandia  mountains,  which  lie  immediately 
east  of  Albuquerque.  They  are  vast  tilted  blocks  and  bear 
in  their  facial  expressions,  along  their  bold  escarpments, 
evidence  of  a  most  profound  fault;  the  throw  being  nearly 
one  mile  perpendicularly.  This  fault  line  seems  to  have 
passed  through  the  little  Burro  Gap  which  marks  the  dividing 
point  between  the  two  ranges;  for  in  the  Sierra Oscura  range 
lying  to  the  north  its  scarp  faces  the  plains  of  the  Jornada 
del  Muerto,  while  to  the  south,  the  San  Andreas  present  a 
similar  appearance  fronting  the  east,  with  its  precipitous  face 
looking  down  on  the  mysterious  plains  of  the  "white  sands." 
The  ores  found  in  these  ranges  of  mountains  are  iron,  copper, 
gold,  silver,  lead,  zinc,  mica  and  fluorite.  All  of  the  mining 
districts  lying  in  the  Oscuras  are  frequently  alluded  to  as  the 
Oscura  district. 

For  convenience  we  will  begin  at  the  north  end  of  the  Sierra 
Oscura  range  and  proceed  south  and  to  the  San  Andreas 
range  taking  the  various  districts  and  camps  in  their  respec- 
tive order. 

Jones  District. 

This  district  lies  in  the  north  end  of  the  Sierra  Oscura  in 
Socorro  county  and  was  established  in  1902.  P.  C.  Bell,  an  old 
time  prospector  and  Fred  Schmidt,  who  is  a  rancher  on  the 
Jornada  plains  southeast  of  Hansonburg,  were  the  principal 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES    AND    MINERALS.  103 

founders.  The  name  was  given  in  honor  of  F.  A.  Jones,  the 
writer  of  this  volume,  who  first  recognized  the  importance  of 
its  vast  iron  deposits,  during  a  visit  there  June  26,  1902,  and 
who  became  interested  with  those  two  gentlemen  in  a  number 
of  iron  locations  during  the  summer  and  fall  of  that  year. 
The  iron  deposits  of  the  Jones  district  seem  to  be  of  more 
economical  importance  than  any  of  the  other  minerals. 

By  referring  to  the  chapter  on  iron,  a  brief  description  of 
these  deposits  is  given. 

About  one  mile  southwest  of  the  Jones  iron  group  consid- 
erable development  work  was  done  on  a  copper  prospect,  by 
an  Italian,  with  no  definite  results;  the  ore  is  principally  a 
carbonate,  in  a  small  fault  fissure  in  the  upper  Carboniferous 
limestone. 

In  the  southwest  part  of  the  district,  just  below  Bruton's 
ranch  at  the  mouth  of  the  canyon,  H.  J.  Render  and  others, 
from  Albuquerque,  in  1902,  did  considerable  development 
work  in  the  Permo-Carboniferous  rocks  for  copper,  but  ap- 
parently without  success.  Along  the  escarpment  south  of 
the  mouth  of  Bruton's  canyon,  are  several  galena  prospects 
in  the  carboniferous  limestone;  considerable  zinc  blende  is 
associated  with  the  lead.  Still  further  south  and  in  the 
vicinity  of  Monument  peak  are  several  good  veins  of  fluor- 
spar, with  a  sprinkle  of  galena  running  through  the  vein  stuff. 

In  the  inmediate  vicinity  and  to  the  north  of  Bruton's 
canyon,  an  "old  timer"  by  the  name  of  John  Smythe  has 
located  numerous  copper  prospects  all  of  which  lie  in  the 
gray  and  chocolate  'sandstones,  presumably  Triassic.  It  is 
the  opinion  of  the  writer  that  nothing  permanent  will  ever 
result  from  these  latter  locations. 

Hansonburg    District. 

It  was  about  the  year  1872  when  this  section  of  Socorro 
county  first  attracted  the  attention  of  prospectors. 

A  man  by  the  name  of  Pat  Higgins,  who  previously  sold 
his  mining  interests  in  Water  canyon  in  the  Magdalena 
mountains,  appears  to  have  been  the  discoverer  of  the  dis- 
trict. Subsequently  the  district  received  its  name  from  the 
old  prospector  Hanson,  who  formerly  operated  at  Magdalena 
and  Socorro. 


104  NEW    MEXICO   MINES  AND   MINERALS. 

Prospecting  has  been  carried  on  intermittently  ever  since 
the  district  became  known;  thus  far  but  little  success  has 
attended  the  efforts  of  the  prospectors. 

The  Alcazar  Copper  Company  during  1901,  under  the 
supervision  of  A.  J.  Borden  developed  one  or  two  properties 
quite  extensively,  having  erected  a  gasoline  hoist  and  numer- 
ous buildings;  but  during  the  latter  part  of  the  year  trouble 
arose  in  the  management  among  the  eastern  stockholders 
and  the  concern  suspended  work  indefinitely.  One  car  load 
of  ore,  only,  was  shipped  by  this  company. 

The  Hansonburg  camp  lies  on  the  west  side  of  the  Sierra 
Oscura  in  Socorro  county,  near  the  center  of  the  range,  in 
the  series  of  low  red  hills  which  lie  along  the  base  of  the 
mountains;  these  red  hills  extend  as  far  north  as  the  red 
tanks  west  of  Bursum's  sheep  ranch.  This  sequence  of 
rocks  is  copper  bearing  and  belongs  to  the  Permo-Carbonif- 
erous  series. 

Estey  City  District. 

Across  from  Hansonburg  over  on  the  east  side  of  the 
Oscura  range  is  the  Estey  City  district.  This  district  sprung 
into  existence  in  1900;  although  copper  had  been  known  to 
exist  there  many  years  before. 

During  a  visit  to  that  region  by  the  writer,  in  June  1902, 
the  time  for  a  cursory  examination  was  taken  and  a  section 
was  hastily  sketched,  which  presents  a  general  idea  of  the 
peculiarity  of  the  copper  deposits  on  this  side  of  the  range. 

The  red  hills  or  series  of  rocks  on  this  side  are  similar  to 
those  on  the  Hansonburg  side.  There  are  three  distinct 
mineralized  zones,  two  in  sandstone  and  the  third  in  a  gray 
shale;  all  of  which  carry  copper  compounds.  Copper  glance 
(chalcocite),  copper  carbonate  (malachite),  copper  pyrites 
(chalcopyrite)  and  peacock  copper  (bornite)  are  found;  the 
latter  ore  occurring  in  nodules  as  large  as  two  inches  in 
diameter.  In  the  shales  of  the  Lucky  Jack  location  such 
nodules  are  abundant. 

Since  these  red  series  of  rocks  immediately  overlie  the 
upper  Carboniferous,  they  no  doubt  belong  to  the  Permian. 

The  cupriferous  solutions  seem  to  have  precipitated  and 
segregated  about  organic  substances,  since  the  impressions 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS.  105 

of  fossil  leaves,  stems  of  plants  and  parts  of  trees  are  found; 
the  copper  compounds  having  replaced  the  carbonaceous 
material,  and  thus  preserved  the  texture  of  the  plants.  Owing 
to  the  occurrence  of  these  regular  beds  or  zones  of  copper 
ore,  it  would  seem  probable  that  the  copper  was  contained  in 
the  water  that  carried  the  enclosing  sediments.  Further  to 
the  east,  about  fifteen  miles,  in  the  vicinity  of  Oscura  station, 
on  the  El  Paso  and  Northeastern  Railway  a  fourteen  inch  vein 
of  coal  was  being  developed  by  the  Estey  Mining  and  Milling 
Company,  at  the  time  of  the  writer's  visit. 

On  the  whole,  the  ores  of  the  district  are  very  low  grade, 
not  exceeding  four  per  cent  in  copper.  The  area  over  which 
the  copper  extends  is  considerable,  aggregating  several 
thousand  acres. 

The  Estey  Mining  and  Milling  Company  was  promoted  by 
David  M.  Estey  of  Ovvosso,  Michigan,  who  died  in  September, 
1903,  in  New  Haven.  At  the  outset  this  company  practically 
covered  the  whole  'country  and  atone  time  controlled,  it  is 
said,  about  three  hundred  claims. 

A  large  electrolytic  plant  of  100  tons  capacity  was  installed, 
water  piped  from  Moonshine  three  miles  distant,  a  townsite 
laid  out,  numerous  buildings  erected  and  other  magnificent 
expenditures  indulged  in;  all  of  this  was  done  before  the  ore 
bodies  had  been  properly  exploited  or  a  method  for  the  cor- 
rect and  economical  treatment  of  the  ores  had  been  investi- 
gated. 

About  $200,000  were  spent  in  this  manner  before  the  crash 
came  which  caused  the  company  to  suspend  operations. 

The  Dividend  Mining  and  Milling  Company,  a  new  organ- 
ization has  recently  been  effected  and  is  now  rehabilitating 
the  wreckage  and  mistakes  of  its  predecessor.  The  north- 
ern part  of  the  district  is  principally  owned  by  the  Sierra 
Oscura  Company,  while  the  southern  portion  belongs  to  the 
Dividend  Mining  and  Milling  Company,  successor  of  the 
Estey  Mining  and  Milling  Company.  The  Little  Effie,  owned 
by  D.  Doherty  and  the  Just-Before,  owned  by  Capt.  Roberts, 
deserve  mention. 

The  production  of  the  district  up  to  January  1,  1904,  is  ap- 
proximately $10,000;  the  values  being  chiefly  in  copper. 

If  a  success  is  made  working  these  low  grade  ores,  it  will 


OF    TH£ 

UNIVERSITY 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS.  107 

require  the  greatest    metallurgical  skill  and  the  strictest 
economy. 

San  Andreas  District. 

Under  the  San  Andreas  district,  are  a  number  of  smaller 
sub-districts  which  refer  to 'particular  localities  in  the  moun- 
tain range. 

In  the  Little  Burro  Gap  are  some  lead  and  copper  prospects: 
one  copper  property  has  been  quite  extensively  developed 
and  is  patented. 

The  Chicago,  a  lead  claim,  was  located  in  the  fall  of  1903  by 
Fred  Schmidt,  F.  C.  Toney  and  the  writer,  which  shows 
fairly  well  for  a  prospect;  it  is  in  the  upper  carboniferous 
limestone  and  near  the  contact  of  the  Permian. 

To  the  south  of  the  main  wagon  road  in  going  through  the 
gap  and  on  the  west  side  of  the  divide  there  appears  to  be 
favorable  prospects  in  zinc-lead  ores.  In  an  old  working 
about  twenty  feet  deep,  sphalerite  seems  to  predominate  over 
the  galenite. 

Across  the  divide  and  in  the  vicinity  of  Mocking-Bird 
Springs  and  Mine,  much  prospecting  has  been  done  in  the 
early  days.  Lead,  zinc  and  copper  sulphides  are  the  pre- 
vailing mineral  characteristics. 

The  principal  property  here  is  the  Mocking-bird  group,  of 
twenty-three  claims  owned  by  the  Dividend  Mining  and 
Milling  Company  of  Estey  City. 

Around  Capitol  Peak,  still  farther  to  the  south,  copper 
seems  to  become  more  prominent.  In  the  Mocking-Bird  dis- 
trict as  a  general  rule,  the  vein-stuff  carries  considerable 
fluor  spar.  Immediately  north  of  Mocking-Bird  springs  in 
the  first  canyon  there  are  indications  of  mica,  which  is  alluded 
to  under  the  caption  of  mica. 

West  and  a  little  south  of  Capitol  Peak,  in  the  vicinity  of 
Dripping  Springs,  copper  and  lead  predominate.  Several 
properties  in  this  region  have  been  extensively  developed, 
though  none  have,  as  yet  developed  into  producing  mines  of 
any  consequence. 

The  Boulder  group  and  Whirlwind,  Coyote  and  Rattler,  are 
managed  by  Thos.  T.  Leask;  the  Bean  group  is  owned  by  S. 
L.  Bean,  and  the  Grand  View  group,  16  to  1  group  and  Gold 


108  NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS. 

Reserve  deserve  mention  at  this  time,  and  seem  to  have  a 
future. 

Mound  Spring  District. 

This  district  is  situated  in  township  6  south,  range  6  east, 
and  lies  midway  between  Estey  City  and  the  Jones  district, 
on  the  eastern  slope  of  the  range.  It  derived  its  name  from 
some  springs  in  that  region. 

Nothing  has  been  done  here  for  a  number  of  years;  two 
patented  claims  include  everything  worth  mentioning.  The 
ores  are  gold,  silver,  copper  and  iron. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 


SOCORRO  MOUNTAIN   DISTRICT. 

This  district  which  lies  immediately  west  of  the  town  of 
Socorro,  was  a  scene  of  much  mining  activity  during  the 
eighties.  The  Rio  Grande  smelter  situated  some  two  miles 
west  of  the  court  house  of  Socorro,  was  in  full  blast  then; 
receiving  its  principal  fluxing  ores  from  the  famous  Kelley 
and  Graphic  mines  at  Magdalena,  and  the  more  silicious 
products  from  Socorro  mountain.  This  once  prominent 
smelting  plant  is  now  practically  dismantled;  and  with  the 
dying  fires  of  its  stacks  the  life  of  the  Socorro  district  passed 
out. 

At  present  there  is  little'prospect  of  a  revival  of  the  dis- 
trict, owing  to  the  highly  silicious  character  of  the  dre  and 
the  low  price  of  silver,  inactivities  will  likely  be  prolonged 
for  some  time  to  come. 

The  geology  of  this  district  is  rather  complex;  the  origin 
of  the  mountain  itself  is  due  to  an  old  andesite  volcano,  from 
or  near  which  several  distinct  flows  have  emanated.  Taken 
in  their  order  relative  to  age,  the  lirst  outbreak  was  evi- 
dently andesite,  which  is  practically  covered  by  subsequent 
flows:  and  can  be  seen  in  only  a  few  places  where  erosion  has 
stripped  or  cut  through  the  covering.  Then  comes  the 
trachyte,  after  which  the  rhyolite  and  then  lastly  the  basalt 
mat  pa/.s.  Periods  of  erosion  of  variable  duration  occurred 
between  the  flows. 

Below  the  precipitous  cliff  which  fronts  the  Rio  Grande 
and  to  the  north  of  the  principal  mines  of  the  district  may  be 
seen  a  superficial  exposure  of  the  lower  Carboniferous  lime- 
stones; the  same  series  may  be  seen  about  15  miles  farther 
north  at  the  Lemitar  mountains,  in  a  similar  exposure. 

On  top  of  the  highest  peak  of  the  Socorro  mountain  some 
typical  phonolites  exist;  the  general  type  of  rock  on  the  peak 
however,  is  trachyte.  By  an  increase  in  soda  the  trachyte 
passes  into  phonolite:  this  point  was  the  only  place  in  the 


110 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS. 


district  in  which  the  latter  rock  was  observed.  South  of 
the'principal  mines  and  to  the  north  of  Blue  canyon  are  ex- 
tensive beds  of  fire  clay.  This  clay  seems  to  be  the  result  of 
the  kaolinization  of  the  old  andesite  flow.  It  is  on  the  line 
of  this  contact  between  the  andesite  and  trachyte  where  the 


Fig.  19-SOCORRO  MOUNTAIN.    Photographed  by  F.  A.  Jones,  19O2. 

principal  zone  of  mineralization  of  the  district  lies.  The  ore 
is  a  white  and  gray  quartz,  carrying  silver,  but  no  gold  of 
which  to  speak. 

The  mineralized  zone  extends  parallel  with  the  base  of  the 
mountain  and  pitches  into  it  at  an  average  angle  of  about  45°. 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS.  Ill 

It  seems  that  some  evidence  of  ancient  workings,  presum- 
ably by  the  Spaniards,  existed  in  this  region  at  the  time  the 
country  was  first  being  prospected,  which  was  as  early  as 
1867, 

A  man  by  the  name  of  Hanson,  one  of  the  former  owners  of 
the  Kelly  mine  at  Magdalena,  discovered  the  Torrance  mine; 
he  being  among  the  first  prospectors  who  created  the  ex- 
citement over  the  discovery  of  silver  in  the  Socorro  moun- 
tain. The  Merritt  mine  was  next  to  the  Torrance  in  import- 
ance. To  these  two  properties  the  chief  production  of  the 
district  is  due. 

The  Hainmel  mine,  lying  just  north  of  Blue  canyon, 
carries  silver  and  lead  values;  it  is  claimed  that  a  few  assays 
running  high  in  gold  were  taken  from  this  property.  The 
Volcanic  Mountain  group,  consisting  of  nine  claims  and 
located  higher  on  the  mountain,  was  thought  to  have  consid- 
erable merit  by  the  former  owner,  William  Glasson,  now 
deceased. 

Most  of  the  properties  in  Socorro  mountain  are  now  either 
abandoned  or  merely  kept  alive  by  the  annual  assessment;  no 
effort  is  made  toward  mining,  whatever.  The  production  of 
the  district  since  its  organization  to  the  present  time,  January 
1,1904,  is  $760,000. 

Socorro  mountain  is  clothed  in  grandeur  to  the  student  of 
nature.  The  several  flows  of  breccia  ted  and  complex  eruptives 
bear  testimony  of  the  awful  ordeal  through  which  the  region 
has  passed.  Considering  the  recent  earthquake  shocks  in 
this  immediate  section  in  connection  with  the  thermal  springs 
at  the  base  of  the  mountain,  these  point  to  the  fact  that  life  is 
not  yet  extinct  in  that  shattered  and  rock  riven  member. 

Lemitar  Mountain  District. 

This  locality  lies  to  the  north  of  Socorro  mountain  about 
ton  miles.  The  country  is  broken,  faulted  and  titled,  bearing 
evidence  of  much  aqueous  and  igneous  activity,  as  though  the 
first  volcanic  outbreak  came  through  a  marginal  sea  bottom. 
Andesite,  trachyte  and  rhyolite  flows  followed  in  pretty 
much  the  same  order  as  at  the  Socorro  mountain.  At  or 
near  the  contact  of  the  acid  members  with  the  limestone,  a 


112  NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS. 

mineralized  zone  exists  which  carries  the  sulphides  of  lead 
and  zinc. 

Considerable  prospecting  has  been  done  in  the  Lemitars, 
yet  nothing  has  been  found  that  would  justify  a  heavy  expen- 
diture in  developing  the  existing  prospects.  Some  very 
good  assays  in  silver  have  been  reported  from  certain  locali- 
ties in  the  district.  On  the  northern  slopes  the  tendency  of 
the  mineralization  is  toward  copper. 

San  Lorenzo  District. 

This  is  comparatively  a  new  district;  although  the  pres- 
ence of  copper,  gold,  silver  and  manganese  have  long  been 
known  to  exist.  The  district  took  its  name  from  the  San 
Lorenzo  pass,  which  is  immediately  south  of  the  Jerome  cop- 
per property. 

It  lies  about  eight  miles  west  of  San  Acacia,  a  village  on 
the  A.  T.  &  S.  P.  Railway  and  about  twenty- three  miles 
northwest  of  the  town  of  Socorro,  in  Socorro  county  and  on 
the  Servilleta  (La  Joya)  grant.  All  matters  of  business  per- 
taining to  the  grant  are  transacted  through  a  Board  of 
Supervisors  elected  by  the  resident  owners  of  the  grant. 

The  Board  of  Supervisors  is  usually  very  fair  in  dealing 
with  bonafide  prospectors  and  mining  men,  desiring  conces- 
sions and  rights. 

The  most  important  discovery  in  the  district — the  Jerome 
lode — was  made  in  the  spring  of  1901,  by  Mark  Thomas  of 
Albuquerque. 

A  number  of  locations  have  been  made  at  various  times  in 
different  parts  of  the  district;  but,  the  most  promising  of 
them  all  is  the  Jerome  group  of  copper  claims.  The  Jerome, 
the  Camp  Bird  and  the  Sacramento  constitute  the  best  loca- 
tions so  far  as  now  known. 

This  property  is  yet  only  meagerly  developed.  The  work 
on  the  Jerome  claims  consists  of  two  tunnels  or  drifts  about 
35  feet  apart  and  some  40  feet  each  in  length.  Across-cut 
of  about  25  feet  is  run  from  one  of  these  to  intercept  the 
drift  which  is  connected  by  a  40-foot  shaft. 

Several  shafts  of  superficial  depth  are  on  the  Sacramento: 
one  is  down  about  25  feet.  A  few  open  cuts  constitute  the 
work  on  the  Camp  Bird. 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS.  1.13 

Native  copper,  cuprite,  chrysocolla,  malachite,  tenorite, 
with  small  values  of  gold  and  silver,  embrace  the  principal 
minerals  and  metals.  Some  compound  minerals  of  uranium 
and  vanadium  ores  seem  to  occur  sparingly,  which  would 
suggest  the  idea  of  the  presence  of  elements  having  radio- 
activity. 

Owing  to  the  peculiar  manner  in  which  the  native  copper 
occurs,  embedded  in  lime-spar,  in  shot-like  and  acicular  ag- 
gregations, it  would  indicate  secondary  deposition  from  the 
sulphides,  oxides  and  possibly  carbonates  which  have  been 
leached  from  the  encasing  amygdaloidal  rocks. 

The  theory  advanced  by  the  workmen  and  owners,  that  the 
copper  had  been  melted  by  volcanic  action  and  forced  upward 
from  below,  is  not  well  founded. 

This  district  contains  much  manganese  and  may  become 
famous  for  that  mineral  when  properly  exploited.  To  the 
north,  northwest  and  west  of  the  Jerome  group  a  favored 
field  for  manganese  ores  undoubtedly  exists;  as  well  as  in  the 
immediate  vicinity  of  the  Jerome  property.  Pyrolusite  seems 
to  be  the  prevailing  type  of  manganese  ores.  The  geology  of 
the  district  is  comparatively  simple  in  structure,  though 
interesting. 

The  sedimentary  beds  are  tilted  and  dip  to  the  west  at  an 
angle  of  about  25  degrees,  the  same  as  in  the  Lemitar  moun- 
tain, a  few  miles  to  the  south. 

A  reddish  amygdaloidal  volcanic  rock  encases  the  mineral- 
ized vein  of  the  Jerome,  which  seems  to  be  in  a  fractured 
zone  along  a  fault  fissure.  A  system  of  faults  extends  north 
and  south  and  parallels  the  main  ridge.  Horizontal  faulting, 
also,  exists  and  mineralization  occurs  along  these  planes,  as 
well  as  in  the  main  fault-system. 

More  than  a  mile  to  the  east  a  similar  eruptive  is  found 
which  conforms  to  the  sedimentaries  and  in  which  the  occur- 
rence of  copper  is  noted. 

Pour  or  five  miles  north  of  the  Jerome  an  extensive  flow  of 
inn/ P'tis  is  impregnated  with  copper  in  the  form  of  carbon- 
ate, which  will  average  about  three  per  cent  of  copper.  It 
appears  that  the  solution  of  copper  circulated  through  the 
lava  just  after  or  about  the  time  of  the  final  cooling  of  the 
flow. 


114  NEW    MEXICO    MINES    AND   MINERALS. 

Hanson  District. 

This  district  embraces  the  Sierra  Lad  rones,  and  lies 
thirty-five  miles  northwest  of  the  town  of  Socorro. 

It  was  discovered  by  a  man  by  the  name  of  Hanson  in  1868, 
one  of  the  owners  of  the  Kelly  mine  in  the  early  days. 

Owing  to  the  rugged  character  of  the  district  and  the 
scarcity  of  water  in  that  region,  but  little  prospecting  has 
been  done  there  since  its  discovery. 

The  principal  peaks  appear  to  be  granite;  while  at  the 
base,  porphyries  and  eruptive  dikes  abound. 

Prospectors  have  oftentimes  reported  rich  gold  discoveries 
in  the  Sierra  Ladrones,  but  were  never  able  afterward  to  re- 
turn to  the  coveted  spot,  after  once  leaving  it  for  water  and 
supplies.  Others,  who  have  wandered  into  those  mysterious 
fastnesses,  are  said  to  have  never  returned. 

Since  the  only  inducements  held  out  to  those  who  dare 
enter  this  enchanted  region,  were  disappointments  and 
death,  no  one  cared  to  take  chances  against  such  odds. 

Since  the  year  1900,  however,  considerable  prospecting 
has  been  going  on  and  some  fine  looking  prospects  in  gold, 
silver  and  lead  are  now  being  developed. 

The  district  has  never  produced. 

Canyoncito  District. 

About  five  miles  to  the  north  of  the  village  of  San  Acacia  in 
Socorro  county,  and  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  Rio  Grande 
is  the  Canyoncito  mining  district.  The  camp  lies  in  the  Ser- 
villeta  (La  Joya)  grant,  which  is  a  community  grant. 

The  country  is  broken  and  has  been  but  little  prospected, 
owing  to  its  out-of-way  situation. 

The  basal  formation  is  granito-gneiss,  carrying  large  crys- 
tals of  biotite  and  hornblende.  The  axial  ridge  is  parallel  to 
the  Rio  Grande.  To  the  northeast  about  five  miles  is  a  basin 
which  belongs  to  the  cretaceous  coal  measures,  and  which 
has  never  been  exploited  to  any  extent. 

The  Carboniferous  limestones  and  shales  lie  next  to  the 
gneissoid  base  and  dip  at  quite  an  angle  toward  the  river; 
this  in  turn  is  flanked  by  the  Permo-Carboniferous.  Next  to, 
and  even  covering  this  latter  series,  occur  thick  beds  of  gra- 


NEW    MEXICO   MINES    AND    MINERALS.  115 

vel  and  conglomerates,  bordering  the  flood  plain  of  the  Rio 
Grande. 

The  minerals  occurring  in  this  district  are  lead,  iron,  man- 
ganese and  also,  some  copper,  gold  and  silver.  Only  one 
group  of  mines  has  been  worked  to  any  extent— the  Dewey 
group — which  consists  of  three  claims. 

This  property  is  a  low  grade  galena  ore,  carrying  but  little 
values  in  gold  and  silver.  The  gangue  matter  is  calc-spar 
and  quartz;  the  lime  giving  way  to  the  quartz  at  depth.  The 
vein  is  a  remarkably  smooth  fissure,  the  sides  of  which  are 
almost  mathematically  true;  the  strike  is  approximately  east 
and  west  and  the  dip  is  80°  toward  the  south.  The  width  of 
the  vein  is  about  an  average  of  four  and  one-half  feet;  the 
character  of  the  wall  rock  is  the  same  on  each  side. 

A  shaft  is  down  to  a  depth  of  about  110  feet;  which  follows 
the  vein  the  whole  distance.  Some  little  drifting  has  been 
done,  but  no  stoping.  This  vein  has  a  strong  outcrop  for  a 
distance  of  over  3,000  feet.  The  Dewey  lead  property  was 
discovered  by  Lon  Jenkins  in  1895.  The  iron  in  the  district 
has  been  prospected  some;  though  mainly  for  the  gold  it  con- 
tained. 

The  copper  has  never  been  investigated  carefully,  notwith- 
standing there  has  been  some  very  rich  pieces  of  sulphides 
found  on  some  of  the  prospects. 

Chupadero  Mountain  District. 

These  mountains  lie  to  the  east  of  the  Rio  Grande  in  the 
north-east  part  of  Socorro  county.  But  little  prospecting 
has  ever  been  done  in  them;  they  are  low  and  seem  to  be  com- 
posed principally  of  Cretaceous  and  the  red  series  of  sand- 
stone, broken  at  intervals  by  eruptive  dikes. 

Indications  of  copper  are  found  in  various  places;  in  one 
instance,  in  particular,  the  sandstone  is  impregnated  with 
malachite  and  the  cupriferous  sandstone  resembles  that 
found  in  the  vicinity  of  Las  Vegas.  Lack  of  water  and  great 
distance  from  transportation  render  this  section  a  compara- 
tively unknown  quantity. 

Rosedale  District. 
Rosedale  camp  lies  at  the  north  end  of  the  San  Mateo 


116  NEW    MEXICO   MINES   AND   MINERALS. 

mountains,  in  Socorro  county,  about  thirty  miles  west  and  a 
little  north  of  San  Marcial. 

The  first  white  prospector  in  the  San  Mateo  mountains  and 
to  whom  the  discovery  of  gold  is  due,  was  J.  W.  (Jack) 
Richardson,  who  still  resides  there,  in  Rosedale.  This  was 
on  December  15,  1882,  Mr.  Richardson  coming  into  the  San 
Mateo  mountains  by  way  of  San  Marcial.  A  little  later  a 
rush  was  precipitated  in.  that  direction  by  prospectors, 
which  was  shortly  afterwards  checked  by  the  frequent  in- 
cursions of  the  Apache  Indians  under  the  leadership  of  Gero- 
nimo.  Several  massacres  occurred  and  most  of  the  pros- 
pectors quit  the  country. 

Comparatively  little  prospecting  has  been  done  in  the 
Rosedale  district  since  the  first  excitement,  until  quite  re- 
cently. 

The  principal  mine  that  made  the  camp  famous,  is  the 
Rosedale.  This  was  the  first  discovery  and  mining  claim 
located  in  the  district;  it  was  made  by  Jack  Richardson  and 
wife.  Mrs.  Richardson,  it  is  claimed,  found  the  first  float, 
which  she  prevailed  on  her  husband  to  have  assayed,  and 
which  proved  to  carry  good  values  in  gold.  The  Rosedale 
mine  at  the  present  time  belongs  to  the  W.  H.  Martin  Com- 
pany, this  management  having  operated  it  for  several  years. 
This  is  one  of  the  few  properties  that  has  done  development 
and  paid  dividends,  without  stoping  or  taking  out  ore,  other 
than  that  encountered  in  sinking  and  drifting.  A  depth  of 
750  feet  has  been  attained  with  levels  at  every  100-foot 
interval. 

The  vein  is  a  fissure  encased  in  rhyolite,  this  type  of  vein 
and  enclosing  rock  appears  to  be  general  throughout  the 
district.  The  ore  is  free  milling  near  the  surface,  but  is 
practically  base  in  the  deepest  working. 

A  10-stamp  mill  with  a  cyanide  plant  constitutes  the  metal- 
lurgical equipment,  which  was  completed  in  1898. 

The  Rosedale  mine  is  among  the  leading  gold  lode  pro- 
ducers of  New  Mexico. 

Other  properties  in  this  district  are  receiving  attention 
and  are  being  systematically  developed  in  their  working  and 
in  the  installation  of  machinery;  the  New  Golden  Bell  and 
the  White  Cap  deserve  especial  mention  in  this  respect. 


NEW    MEXICO   MINES   AND   MINERALS.  117 

Other  well  known  and  favorable  prospects  are  here  given: 
Bay  Horse,  Ninety-nine,  May  Dew,  Baking  Powder,  New 
Year,  New  Year  No.  1,  Rockefeller,  Golden  Gate,  Gold  Cap, 
Amy  B.,  Greenwood  group  and  the  Graham  lode. 

Red  Hill  District. 

Due  west  of  Rosedale  about  fifteen  miles,  in  township  6 
south,  range  H  west,  is  the  Red  Hill  district. 

This  is  an  unimportant  camp,  very  little  if  any  work  has 
been  done  there  since  in  the  eighties  of  the  past  century. 

Gold  and  copper  are  the  principal  values  contained  in  the 
ores. 


CHAPTER  XVII. 


MAGDALENA  DISTRICT. 

This  region  stands  pre-eminent,  in  New  Mexico,  in  the  pro- 
duction of  lead  and  zinc. 

The  Magdalena  district  lies  west  from  the  town  of  Socor- 
ro,  at  the  end  of  the  Magdalena  branch  of  the  Atchison, 
Topeka  &  Santa  Pe  Railway,  in  north  central  Socorro 
county.  It  took  its  name  from  Mount  Magdalena,  which 
bears  a  face  or  image  formed  by  a  growth  of  shrubs  circum- 
scribing a  small  area  of  rock  debris  on  the  east  side  of  the 
mountain  slope.  This  remarkable  growth  of  shrubbery 
forms  with  distinctness  the  outlines  of  a  woman's  head. 

The  early  Spanish  explorers  pictured  in  this  benign  face, 
the  image  of  Our  Lady  Magdalena. 

A  beautiful  legend  is  handed  down  to  us  that  no  murder 
has  ever  been,  or  could  be  committed  under  the  compassion- 
ate gaze  of  that  contrite  countenance.  This  spot  became  a 
place  of  refuge  and  the  savage  Indian  would  forego  his  bloody 
deeds  under  the  shadow  of  the  holy  mount.  Those  in  dangar 
would  flee  to  this  enchanted  spot,  and  thus,  became  invulner- 
able from  the  onslaught  of  their  pursuers. 

The  discovery  of  the  Magdalena  district  dates  among  the 
earlier  discoveries  in  the  latter  half  of  the  nineteenth  cent- 
ury. 

Col.  J.  S.  Hutchason,  better  known  as  "Old  Hutch"  among 
the  mining  fraternity,  is  conceded  to  be  the  pioneer  of  the 
district  and  the  one  who  made  the  first  location  in  the  camp. 
He  and  his  peon,  a  Mexican  by  the  name  of  Barado  Fidey, 
were  in  that  region  looking  for  rich  float  which  Pete 
Kinsinger*  had  found  at  Pueblo  Springs  during  the  war. 
Failing  to  find  the  object  of  their  search  they  turned  their 
attention  toward  the  Magdalena  mountains  where  they  found 
rich  lead  croppings. 

The  day  following  the  Juanita  lode  was  staked  out,  which 

•"Kinsinger  was  a  pioaeer  miner  at  Elizibethtown  the  time  gold  was  discovered 
there. 


120 


NEW    MEXICO   MINES   AND    MINERALS. 


was  the  first  claim  located  in  the  district;  this  was    in  the 
spring  of  1866.     About  three  weeks  later  Hutchason  located 
the  celebrated  Graphic  mine. 
^  Active  mining  began  a  little  later,  the  lead  ore  was  smelted 


Fig.  21 -"OLD  HUTCH'"  DISCOVERER  OF  MAGDALEN  A  DISTRICT. 
Photographed  by  W.  M.  Borrowdale,  19O4. 

in  an  adobe  furnace  and  the  bullion  was  hauled  to  Kansas 
City  by  bull  teams.  Hutchason  found  the  Kelly  mine  and 
turned  it  over  to  his  friend  Andy  Kelly  to  locate,  who  was 
operating  a  saw  mill,  in  now  what  is  known  as  South  Camp. 
The  Juanita  was  subsequently  sold  to  Col.  E.  W.  Eaton  and 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS.  1*21 

associates;  the  Graphic  mine  was  sold  for  $30,000  later  on. 

This  latter  property  passed  through  several  hands  and  was 
recently  sold,  in  the  latter  part  of  March,  1904,  to  the  Graphic 
Lead  and  Zinc  Company,  which  also,  operates  mines  in  the 
zinc  regions  of  southwest  Missouri. 

Hutchason  afterward  jumped  the  Kelly  property,  the  own- 
ers failing  to  do  the  necessary  annual  assessment;  afterward 
he  sold  the  property  to  Hanson  and  Dawsey.  These  parties 
in  turn  relinquished  their  holdings  to  Mr.  Gustav  Billing  for 
S4r>,000.  Billing  after  assuming  control  of  the  property 
erected  a  smelting  plant  at  Socorro  where  the  product  from 
the  mine  was  treated.  The  Magdalena  branch  of  railroad 
was  built  under  the  guarantee  that  the  Kelly  mine  would  fur- 
nish a  certain  tonnage  for  a  definite  length  of  time.  The  pro- 
duction of  the  Kelly  and  Graphic  mines  up  to  January  1, 
1904,  is  approximately  $5,800,000;  with  the  Kelly  in  the  lead. 
This  production  was  entirely  from  a  lead-silver  ore.  During 
1904,  new  life  dawned  on  the  old  lead  camp;  large  bodies  of 
smithsonite  and  other  forms  of  zinc  ore  were  exploited,  which 
hitherto  had  been  overlooked.  It  was  on  the  strength  of  the 
zinc  ore  bodies  which  effected  the  recent  sale  of  the  Graphic 
mine  to  the  zinc  operators  in  Missouri. 

The  exploitation  and  uncovering  of  zinc  gives  the  Magda- 
lena district  a  new  lease  of  life,  which  promises  to  be  as  per- 
manent as  that  of  the  lead.  It  appears  that  the  carbonate 
lead  ore  is  practically  exhausted,  insofar  as  the  Kelly  and 
Graphic  mines  are  concerned.  In  the  Juanita,  Ambrosia, 
Young  America,  Enterprise,  Juanita  South  and  several  other 
properties,  large  and  profitable  bodies  of  zinc  are  being  un- 
covered. Formerly  these  rich  zinc  carbonates  were  thrown 
over  the  dump  as  being  worthless;  many  of  these  dumps  are 
IIOWT  being  overhauled  with  remunerative  results. 

The  Hardscrabble  mine  was  located  by  a  man  by  the  name 
of  Baker,  who  sold  it  in  the  year  1868  for  the  sum  of  $25.00. 
The  peculiarity  of  the  geological  position  of  the  limestone  of 
the  Hardscrabble.  which  is  so  intimately  associated  with  the 
ore  of  the  district,  is  interesting  in  the  extreme.  This  lime- 
stone is  well  nigh  the  top  of  the  mountain  and  apparently 
embedded  in  the  solid  granite  and  dips  toward  the  east,  which 
is  opposite  from  the  dip  at  other  points  on  the  west  side  of 


122  NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS. 

the  range.  It  is  probable  that  in  the  general  upheaval  of  the 
range  this  patch  of  limestone  became  detached,  and  encased 
in  the  plastic  magmatic  mass,  finally  settling  to  its  present 
position. 

Since  the  lime  terminates  abruptly  in  the  granite,  the  ex- 
istence of  lead  carbonates  also  ceases.  In  the  granite  fissures, 
however,  good  values  in  sulphide  of  copper  were  found.  The 
Hardscrabble  is  among  the  most  noted  properties  in  the  dis- 
trict; it  is  credited  with  a  production  of  $325,000  up  to  January 
1,  1904. 

The  country  to  the  west  has  been  the  scene  of  much  eruptive 
activity;  in  fact  the  Magdalena  range  was  the  central  theatre 
of  volcanic  phenomena  which  extended  to  the  adjacent  sur- 
rounding country. 

Two  principal  craters,  Big  and  Little  Baldy,  bear  evidence 
of  the  baptism  in  fire  during  that  period. 

Successive  flows  of  andesites,  trachytes,  rhyolites  and 
basalts  are  observed  in  various  parts  of  the  region;  the  later 
flows,  in  many  instances  have  entirely  covered  the  older  lavas. 
The  massive  Carboniferous  limestones,  which  flank  the  west 
side  of  the  range,  are  fractured  and  dislocated  in  such  a 
manner  as  to  form  a  general  system  of  fault  fissures;  in  these 
faults  and  along  the  lime  contact  exist  the  principal  ore 
bodies.  The  commercial  ores  common  to  the  district  are 
mainly  lead  and  zinc  carbonates  and  sulphides,  with  some 
silver  and  compounds  of  copper. 

It  is  observed  that  in  every  case  where  good  bodies  of  ore 
are  found,  that  the  limestone  has  been  influenced  by  eruptive 
dikes  and  sheets  of  a  acidic  character. 

Beside  the  claims  already  mentioned  the  district  abounds 
in  smaller  producers  and  favorable  prospects,  which  may  be 
enumerated  in  the  following  properties: 

The  Cavern,  Fifty  Eight,  Tip  Top,  Grey  Hound,  Samson, 
Review,  Ouray,  Umpagra,  Legal  Tender,  Silver  Peg,  Silent 
Friend,  Cimarron,  The  Nit,  Imperial,  Grand  Ledge;  Pearl, 
Key  group,  Oxide  group,  Wheel  of  Fortune,  Golden  group 
and  Iron  Mask.  This  latter  property  is  situated  in  South 
Camp  and  embraces  in  its  connection  the  Old  Iron  Mask 
Smelter,  which  was  erected  but  was  never  "blown  in."  The 
Graphic  Smelter,  between  the  villages  of  Magdalena  and 


NEW    MEXICO   MINES   AND    MINERALS.  123 

Kelly  and  which  was  operated  steadily  for  a  number  of  years, 
has  been  practically  idle  since  1900.  The  Magdalena  dis- 
trict has  produced  in  values  all  told,  up  to  January  1,  1904, 
$n, 700,000,  in  lead  and  silver. 

Pueblo  District. 

The  discovery  of  rich  silver  float  in  this  district  by  Pete 
Kinsinger,  a  soldier,  when  stationed  at  Pueblo  Spring  in  1863, 
led  to  the  discovery  of  the  Magdalena  mining  district  a  few 
years  later.  The  Pueblo  district  lies  a  short  distance  im- 
mediatly  north  of  the  town  of  Magdalena.  Many  locations 
were  made  and  much  prospecting  done  here  in  the  latter 
sixties  of  the  past  century;  nothing  of  any  importance  was 
ever  found,  with  the  exception  of  some  small  rich  veins  of 
silver.  The  formation  is  eruptive,  breaking  through  the 
underlying  limestone,  and  composed  chiefly  of  trachytes  and 
rhyolites,  traversed  by  numerous  dikes  of  a  dark  green  color. 

The  veins  are  very  irregular,  shattered  and  faulted  and  do 
not  appear  to  reach  any  great  depth;  the  Red  Jacket  being  an 
exception  with  regard  to  depth.  The  Chloride  lode,  a  patent- 
ed property,  is  a  contact  fissure  lying  between  lime  and 
porphyry.  It  is  only  meagerly  developed,  having  a  shaft  sixty 
feet  deep.  In  the  Sophia  location  much  of  the  silver  was 
native,  and  existed  in  needle  or  acicular  shape,  which  was 
rather  a  remarkable  occurrence. 

The  celebrated  Ace  of  Spades  mine  was  located  by  George 
Brown  in  1868,  who  previously  was  one  of  the  California 
troopers  of  the  Civil  War,  under  General  Carleton. 

Quite  a  sum  of  money  was  spent  on  this  property  and  a 
number  of  soldiers  of  the  United  States  Army  became  inter- 
ested during  the  period  of  its  early  development.  Its  pro- 
duction is  not  known. 

About  three  or  four  hundred  yards  northwest  of  the  Ace 
of  Spades  is  the  outline  of  an  old  prospect  pit,  supposed  by 
some  to  be  of  Spanish  origin. 

Iron  Mountain  District. 

Uncle  Billy  Hill,  as  he  was  familiarly  known  in  the  early 
days  of  mining  in  New  Mexico,  was  the  discoverer  of  silver 
ore  in  the  Iron  Mountain  district.  He  came  into  the  Iron 


124  NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS. 

mountain  region  in  January,  1881 ,  and  made  the  first  location 
in  the  camp,  known  as  the  Summit  lode. 

A  little  later  in  the  season  Davis  and  White  drifted  into 
that  region  and  located  the  Old  Boss. 

In  June,  Judge  Hagan  of  Socorro  became  interested  with 
Uncle  Billy  in  the  Summit  claim;  after  which  a  considerable 
quantity  of  hard  carbonate  lead-silver  ore  was  mined,  for 
which  the  district  is  noted.  A  little  of  the  best  grade  of 
the  Summit  ore  was  sent  to  the  smelter  with  fairly  good 
results.  The  occurrence  of  the  ore  is  remarkable,  inasmuch 
it  is  found  in  a  pipe,  and  is  termed  a  "pipe  vein,'"  which  has 
been  followed  down  to  a  depth  of  over  300  feet  without  reach- 
ing the  end. 

During  September,  1881,  G.  L.  Brooks  and  F.  J.  Wilson 
came  into  the  district  and  bonded  from  Davis  and  White  the 
Old  Boss  for  $17,500,  which  at  that  time  was  a  shallow  pros- 
pect hole,  and  constituted  the  principal  development. 

These  two  gentlemen,  by  February,  1882,  paid  off  the 
amount  of  the  bond  and  sold  a  half  interest  in  the  property 
for  $25,000. 

The  ore  of  the  Old  Boss  is  a  hard  carbonate  of  lead  and 
silver  and  averaged  $250  per  ton,  the  quality  shipped  at  that 
time;  a  number  of  carloads  of  a  lower  grade  of  ore  is  now  on 
the  dumps. 

About  800  feet  of  work  has  been  done  on  this  property 
and  the  greatest  depth  attained  is  165  feet;  the  mine  has  lain 
idle  a  number  of  years. 

In  the  fall  of  1881  C.  T.  Brown  located  the  Mammoth  group 
of  claims,  which  he  developed  and  subsequently  sold.  The 
Cabinet  mine  is  also  well  known  in  that  region  and  is  exten- 
sively developed.  The  ore  is  said  to  occur  in  a  pipe  vein 
here,  very  similar  to  that  in  the  Summit. 

An  iron  lode  has  also  been  prospected  in  the  district  to  a 
depth  of  eighty  feet. 

The  district  is  in  Socorro  county,  about  ten  miles  west  and 
a  little  north  of  Magdalena,  and  eight  miles  due  west  of  the 
Pueblo  district;  it  borders  on  the  San  Augustine  plain. 

The  name  of  the  district  was  suggested  by  the  immense 
quantity  of  iron  float  found  scattered  over  eight  square  miles 
of  that  region.  The  iron  is  found  in  pieces  from  the  size  of  a 


NEW    MEXICO   MINES   AND   MINERALS.  12") 

pea  to  chunks  of  several  hundred  pounds.  Every  piece  of 
the  iron  is  smooth  and  well  rounded,  indicating  that  is  has 
been  transported  by  glacial  or  river  action  from  a  distance. 

Most  of  this  float  was  picked  up  a  number  of  years  ago  by 
the  Mexicans  and  hauled  to  the  Rio  Grande  smelter  at 
Socorro  for  flux;  it  is  mainly  a  high  grade  hematite,  but 
possesses  some  magnetic  properties. 

This  region  is  sometimes  spoken  of  as  the  "Ten  Mile''  dis- 
trict. 

A  townsite  was  staked  out  by  Judge  Hagan,  Brooks,  Wil- 
son and  others  in  October,  1881,  and  nearly  one  hundred 
cabins  erected;  lots  sold  as  high  as  $250  each.  The  new 
town  was  called  Council  Rock;  named  from  a  large  rock  near 
a  fine  spring  of  water.  This  particular  spot  in  the  western 
wilds  was  known  long  before,  and  had  become  famous  as  a 
rendezvous  of  the  Indian  braves  and  whites,  where  they 
would  sit  in  council  to  determine  war  or  peace. 

After  a  lapse  of  two  decades  the  towering  rock  and  the 
purling  spring  appear  as  of  old;  but,  the  village  of  Council 
Rock  exists  only  in  the  history  of  pioneer  mining. 

Cat  Mountain  District. 

This  district  lies  about  twelve  miles  southwest  of  Magda- 
lena.  It  was  first  prospected  in  the  early  seventies  by  E. 
L.  Smart,  Pat  McLaughlin  and  others,  but  without  success 
at  that  time. 

Later  Pat  McLaughlin  located  a  number  of  claims  which  he 
subsequently  sold  to  the  Socorro  Gold  Mining  Company  for 
$'25,000.  This  company  eventually  acquired  a  group  of  four- 
teen claims,  after  which  it  erected,  in  1902,  a  20-stamp 
amalgamating  mill  with  a  cyanide  adjunct  for  treating  the 
tailings. 

This  mill  was  operated  only  a  short  time  in  1903,  when  it 
was  closed  down  and  is  idle  at  the  present  writing,  June 
14,  1904.  The  Cat  mountain  proposition  is  low  grade  and 
mainly  a  refractory  ore;  the  trouble  appeared  to  be  in  not 
being  able  to  save  the  values.  A  few  other  locations  exist  in 
the  Cat  mountain  district,  on  which  the  annual  assessment  is 
being  kept  up;  the  Legal  Tender  group  belongs  to  this  class. 

In  the  Cat  mountain  properties  the  veins  are  fissures  and 


126  NEW    MEXICO   MINES   AND   MINERALS. 

the    vein  matter  is  principally   quartz,   encased  in  augite- 
andesite. 

Silver  Mountain  (Water  Canyon)  District. 

The  discovery  of  mineral  in  this  section  of  Socorro  county 
is  contemporaneous  with  that  on  the  Magdalena  side  of  the 
range. 

Water  canyon  is  the  principal  aqueduct  of  the  water  which 
falls  on  the  northeast  slope  of  the  Magdalena  mountains. 

Patrick  Higgins,  an  ex-soldier,  was  the  first  white  pros- 
pector to  give  attention  to  the  minerals  common  to  this  region. 

He  came  to  Water  canyon  in  1868  and  located  claims 
numbered  1,  2,  3,  4,  and  5  which  he  afterward  sold  to  a  man 
from  Colorado  by  the  name  of  Justice  in  1872,  for  $2,500. 

Mining  has  been  conducted  there  ever  since  the  time  of 
Higgins  with  comparatively  little  success.  The  district  has 
been  unfortunate  in  the  promotion  of  mining  enterprises;  in- 
asmuch as  the  manipulators  of  the  mining  properties  seemed 
to  be  successful  in  saddling  onto  the  purchaser  worthless 
prospects  and  stocks  which  were  invariably  a  net  loss  to  the 
investor. 

Injudicious  expenditures  in  building  costly  plants,  unadapt- 
ed  to  the  proper  metallurgical  treatment  of  certain  kinds  of 
ores,  and  that  too  before  the  properties  were  systematically 
and  thoroughly  developed,  may  be  cited  in  the  case  of  the 
Timber  Peak  promotion  and  management.  This  failure  not 
only  ruined  many  innocent  victims  financially,  but  has  done 
incalculable  injury  to  the  whole  district  and  cast  a  blight  over 
the  camp  which  will  take  years  to  overcome. 

Water  canyon  appears  to  possess  many  encouraging  pros- 
pects, which  no  doubt  in  a  number  of  cases  may  prove  to  be 
producing  and  paying  mines.  The  ores  on  this  side  of  the 
Magdalenas  are  quite  different  from  those  on  the  west  or  Mag- 
dalena side.  Here,  on  the  east  side  of  the  range,  gold,  silver 
and  copper  values  seem  to  predominate.  What  lead  ore  that 
is  found  in  the  district  is  entirely  a  sulphide  and  the  associa- 
tion of  any  zinc  is  also  of  a  like  character. 

It  would  appear  from  observations  of  the  district  made  at 
various  times  by  the  writer,  that  the  principal  values  in  the 
ores  to  be  sought  on  this  side  of  the  range  and  the  only  ones 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS.  127 

that  are  ever  likely  to  pay,  lie  in  gold,  silver  and  copper,  with 
the  chances  of  success  decidedly  in  favor  of  the  gold  and 
silver. 

That  part  of  the  district  lying  well  up  to  the  west  and  south 
is  more  favorable  to  gold  and  silver;  the  lower  or  eastern  por- 
tion runs  to  copper  with  some  lead. 

The  Timber  Peak  Mining  Company  in  the  early  part  of  the 
season  of  1900  completed  a  150  ton  roll-crushing  concentra- 
ting plant  enclosed  in  a  steel  building.  The  plant  was  opera- 
ted only  a  short  time  and  then  closed  down  indefinitely. 

The  plant  was  dismantled  the  following  season  and  a  greater 
portion  of  the  machinery  was  shipped  to  Mexico;  the 
building  was  removed  across  the  range  to  Cat  mountain. 

Several  causes  are  assigned  to  this  failure;  but  it  seems 
certain  that  the  blame  should  not  be  laid  to  the  mine.  The 
Timber  Peak  ore  bodies  are  the  largest  in  the  district,  but 
must  be  classed  as  low  grade;  beneath  the  superficial  oxidized 
zone  heavy  sulphides  are  encountered. 

The  ore  is  about  equally  divided  in  values  between  gold  and 
silver. 

The  Buckeye  group  of  mines  is  situated  in  the  lowrer  or 
copper  zone  of  the  district.  It  is  a  contact  deposit  between 
lime  and  porphyry.  Considerable  work  has  been  done  on 
the  property  and  a  depth  of  300  feet  has  been  attained. 
Water  became  a  very  serious  factor  to  handle;  work  was  sus- 
pended in  1901  and  the  lower  workings  are  now  filled  with 
water. 

One  of  the  best  appearing  properties  in  the  district,  from 
surface  indications  and  from  the  meager  development  done, 
is  the  Iron  King  group.  It  is  a  fissure  in  porphyry  and  car- 
ries values  in  gold  and  silver;  the  proposition  is  low  grade 
with  a  chance  for  opening  up  large  ore  bodies. 

The  Little  Baldy  group  consists  of  nine  claims  which  are 
being  developed  by  a  tunnel,  now  1,200  feet  in  length. 

The  contact  between  porphyry  and  limestone  is  quite  favor- 
able for  a  good  mine;  the  metallic  values  are  lead  and  copper. 

This  property  belongs  to  the  Abbey  Mining  Company,  with 
Nathan  Hall  manager. 

Another  promising  group  which  is  now  becoming  a  pro- 
ducer, is  the  Wall  Street.  A  Huntington  mill  has  been 


128  NEW    MEXICO    MINES  AN*   MINERALS. 

placed  in  position  during  the  season  of  1903,  to  treat  the  oxi- 
dized ores  from  this  group  by  amalgamation.  Several  runs 
have  been  made  up  to  the  time  of  this  writing;  the  results  are 
not  yet  known.  Copper  and  iron  sulphides  are  present  in 
certain  parts  of  the  vein.  The  vein  is  a  contact  between 
poryhyryand  lime. 

The  Jennie  Lee  group  has  been  perhaps  the  best  shipper 
in  the  district;  it  lies  on  the  east  side  of  Copper  Creek,  which 
is  recognized  as  the  lead  portion  of  the  region.  This  latter 
group  consists  of  four  claims:  the  Jennie  Lee,  Bologna,  Pat 
Savage  and  Black  Veins.  As  usual,  for  this  character  of  ore, 
the  depesit  is  along  the  contact  of  lime  and  porphyry. 

Abbey  District. 

In  the  region  about  Abbey  the  country  is  very  much 
faulted  and  broken  similar  to  that  toward  the  southeast  in 
the  Pueblo  district. 

This  district  has  been  prospected  but  little,  comparatively 
speaking;  the  principal  development  being  on  the  property 
of  the  Abbey  Mining  Company,  under  the  supervision  of 
Nathan  Hall.  Copper  and  lead  constitute  the  principal 
metallic  values  of  the  region. 

A  splendid  quality  of  coking  coal  exists  in  the  immediate 
vicinity;  the  extent  of  the  field  is  not  known.  The  complex 
nature  of  the  faulting  would  render  the  coal  expensive  to 
mine. 

The  district  as  yet  has  had  no  production;  practically 
nothing  is  being  done  at  the  present  writing. 

Abbey  is  situate  about  eighteen  miles  northwest  of  Mag- 
dalena  in  township  1  north,  range  5  west,  in  Socorro 
county. 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 


COONEY  DISTRICT. 

A  few  words  concerning  the  history  of  the  man  whose 
memory  is  perpetuated  in  the  name  of  the  district,  would 
seem  legitimate  and  proper. 

James  C.  Cooney,  Quartermaster  Sergeant  of  the  8th 
United  States  Cavalry,  while  stationed  at  Fort  Bayard  in 
1875,  under  the  command  of  Col.  Davis,  was  held  in  high 
esteem,  by  his  superior  officer,  due  to  valuable  services  ren- 
dered on  the  western  frontier,  as  scout  and  guide.  On  one 
occasion,  Lieutenant  George  W.  Wheeler  and  his  corps,  then 
engaged  on  the  Geographical  Survey  West  of  the  100th  Merid- 
ian, were  surrounded  on  a  mountain  in  Arizona  by  two 
hundred  Apache  Indians,  a  courier  in  the  party  managed  to 
escape  through  the  hostile  line  and  reached  Fort  Bayard 
and  reported  the  distress  of  Wheeler's  parby.  Acting  im- 
mediately on  this  intelligence,  the  late  Major  Bob  Swan,  who 
died  at  Silver  City,  detailed  twelve  men,  placing  Cooney  in 
command,  with  orders  to  proceed  to  the  rescue  with  all  pos- 
sible speed. 

Arriving  on  the  scene,  the  Indians  faced  about  whereupon 
Cooney  gave  the  command  to  charge,  each  man  selecting  his 
quarry  wherever  found.  A  number  of  the  Indians  had 
guns,  but  the  majority  had  bows  and  arrows.  At  this  junc- 
ture Lieutenant  Wheeler  made  a  sortie  with  his  little  band, 
and  the  Indians  retreated  in  dismay,  carrying  off  their 
wounded  and  leaving  dead  seventeen  of  their  braves  on  the 
field  of  battle. 

During  the  engagement  Cooney  had  his  horse  shot  and  re- 
ceived three  arrows  through  his  clothes;  while  three  of  his 
men  were  slightly  wounded  by  arrows. 

For  his  services  on  this  occasion  he  was  offered  a  commis- 
sion, but  declined  on  account  of  having  discovered*  during 
the  same  year  1875,  high  grade  silver  and  copper  ore  in  the 

*A  German  in  18TO,  is  said  to  be  the  original  discoverer  of  the  district. 


130  NEW    MEXICO    MINES  AND   MINERALS. 

Mogollon  mountains,  on  a  previous  scouting  expedition. 
Immediately  at  the  expiration  of  his  services  as  scout,  he  or- 
ganized a  party  to  prospect  the  district  of  his  new  discovery. 
The  party  was  composed  of  Geo.  W.  Williams,  Prank  Vingoe 
and  John  Lambert  of  Georgetown;  Harry  McAllister,  Wil- 
liam Burns  and  George  Doyle  of  Central. 

Several  fights  with  the  Apaches  occurred  while  they  were 
engaged  in  making  their  locations;  this  was  in  the  spring  of 
1876.  On  account  of  the  increased  hostilities  of  the  Indians, 
no  assessment  work  could  be  performed  at  that  time;  all 
locations  were  necessarily  abandoned,  excepting  the  Albatross 
which  was  located  by  Burns,  and  who  managed  to  do  his 
annual  assessment. 

In  1878  all  of  the  original  claims  were 're-located,  excepting 
the  Albatross,  as  heretofore  mentioned. 

The  famous  Silver  Bar,  or  as  it  is  better  known,  the 
"Cooney"  mine,  was  among  the  re-locations  in  1876.  From 
the  time  of  the  second  location  until  April  1880,  work  was 
prosecuted  with  considerable  vigor. 

It  was  on  the  28th  day  of  April,  1880,  when  the  settlers  on 
Mineral  creek,  now  the  mining  camp  of  Cooney,  were  attacked 
by  the  Apache  Chieftain,  Victorio,  and  his  savage  band;  two 
miners  were  killed.  One  by  the  name  of  Buhlman  was  found 
dead  at  the  mouth  of  his  prospect  tunnel;  the  bones  of  the 
other  person  were  discovered  two  years  later  at  Silver  Peak. 
Two  miners,  George  Williams  and  James  Taylor  escaped,  the 
latter  being  severely  wounded;  they  fled  to  notify  the  ranchers 
in  the  valley  of  the  Frisco,  about  seven  miles  away. 

Roberts  ranch  on  the  west  side  of  the  stream  was  the 
rendezvous  of  the  surprised  settlers  and  miners.  This  second 
attack  was  made  on  the  29th  day  of  April,  and  raged  all  day 
with  fury;  one  miner  by  the  name  of  William  Wilcox  was 
killed.  The  house  was  a  crude  stockade  affair  made  by  set- 
ting one  end  of  small  poles  in  the  ground;  yet,  it  served  as  a 
great  protection  from  the  missiles  of  death  dealt  out  by  the 
redskins. 

A  number  of  Indians  were  killed  by  the  imprisoned  whites, 
who  fired  their  weapons  through  the  openings  between  the 
poles  of  the  cabin  with  considerable  execution. 

On  the  following  morning,  April  30th,  no  Indians  were  in 


NEW    MEXJCO    MINES   AND    MINERALS. 


131 


sight.     Al  Potter  and  John  Motsinger  decided  to  go  up  to 
Mineral  creek  and  ascertain  the  fate  of  those  who  had  no 
chance  of  reaching  Roberts  ranch.     They  had  not  proceeded 
more  than  half  way,  when  they  were  fired  on  from  ambush 
the  rifle  which  Potter  held  was  shot  from  his  hand. 


Fig.  22-TOMB  OF  J.  C.  COONEY.  Photographed  by  F.  A.  Jones,  19O4. 

men  of  nerve  they  pulled  their  pistols  and  charged  through 
the  line  of  Indians,  who  were  on  foot,  making  their  way  back 
to  the  ran;ch. 

Later  in  the  day  Cooney  and  William  Chick  tried  to  reach 
the  mining  camp,  when  both  were  killed.*    Their  bodies 

*The  inscription  on  Cooney's  tomb  bears  the  date  April  29th,  for  the  day  on  which 
he  was  killed;  According1  to  Mr  Meeder  who  keeps  the  Dry  Creek  stage  station,  and 
who  was  one  of  the  besieged  persons  at  Roberts  ranch  is  positive  that  April  30th  is  the 
correcte  date. 


132  NEW    MEXICO    MINES  AND   MINERALS. 

were  horribly  mutilated.  Near  the  spot  where  Cooney  was 
killed,  a  large  boulder  was  tunneled  into  and  the  fragments 
of  his  body  were  laid  to  repose  in  this  rock-ribbed  sepulcher. 

Cooney  was  forty  years  old  at  the  time  of  his  demise.  Capt. 
M.  Cooney,  a  brother  of  the  unfortunate  scout  and  frontiers 
man,  arrived  in  the  district,  from  New  Orleans,  shortly  after- 
wards and  began  active  development  of  his  brother's  prop- 
erty— the  Silver  Bar  or  Cooney  mine.  The  Silver  Bar  was 
sold  by  Capt.  M.  Cooney  to  the  Silver  Bar  Copper  Mining 
Company,  composed  of  Colorado  parties,  in  1898,  who  worked 
it  at  a  great  profit  until  1901,  when  the  property  was  bought 
by  the  Mogollon  Gold  and  Copper  Company.  This  latter 
company,  the  present  owner,  has  done  extensive  develop- 
ment. A  main  shaft  is  now  down  over  600  feet  with  levels 
every  one  hundred  feet;  an  air  compressor  and  a  one-hundred, 
ton  crushing  and  concentrating  plant  are  among  the  improve- 
ments made  by  this  company. 

The  production  of  the  Cooney  mine  to  January  1,  1904,  is 
approximately  $1, 000,000. 

The  Mogollon  Gold  and  Copper  Company  owns  five  groups 
of  properties:  First  the  Florida  group,  comprising  the  Florida 
Christmas, Laura  and  Mame  mines; second,  the  Independence 
group,  consisting  of  the  Independence,  Postmistress,  Bloomer 
Girl  and  Nancy  Hanks,  Jr. ;  third,  the  Little  Johnie  group, 
embracing  the  Little  Johnie,  Ninety  Eight  and  Hidden 
Treasure;  fourth,  the  Malachite  lode;  and  fifth,  the  Little 
Charlie  group,  containing  the  Little  Charlie,  Combination, 
Little  i:Jiant,"  Lena,  Sandy,  Homestake,  Little  Katie,  Iron 
Hat  and  Selma. 

Under  the  able  management  of  W.  J.  Weatherby,  the 
superintendent,  the  Mogollon  Gold  and  Copper  Company  is 
developing  its  holdings  in  a  scientific  and  workmanlike 
manner. 

Notwithstanding  the  eighty-five  miles  haul  by  wagon  to 
Silver  City,  the  nearest  railway  point,  many  of  the  Mogollon 
mines  have  been  and  are  proving  a  financial  success. 

The  Helen  Mining  Company  owns  a  group  of  thirteen 
claims;  the  principal  producers  are  the  Confidence  and 
Black  Bird.  The  greatest  depth  reached  is  1,030  feet.  It  is 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES  AND   MINERALS.  133 

estimated  that  the  production  of  this  property  has  been  ap- 
proximately $1,000,000  up  to  January  1,  1904. 

A  30-stamp  mill,  with  12  pans,  6  settlers  and  9  concentra- 
tors has  been  erected  at  Graham  on  White-water  creek  about 
four  miles  from  the  mine  where  the  ore  is  treated.  A  pipe-line 


Fig.    23— CONCENTRATING  MILL  OF  MOGOLLON  GOLD  AND  COPPER 
COMPANY.    Photographed  by  E.  M.  Chadbourne,  19O4. 

about  three  miles  long  runs  up  White  water  canyon  and  takes 
out  the  water  from  a  large  storage  reservoir  which  is  suffi- 
cient to  run  the  mill  machinery  during  the  wet  season.  At 
such  times  when  the  water  supply  is  inadequate  steam  is 
used.  Electric  drills  are  used  at  the  mines.  The  property 


134  NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS. 

has  been  idle  since  1902,  due  to  the  death  of  the  superinten- 
dent John  T.  Graham,  who  was  one  of  the  principal  owners, 
which  occurred  about  that  time 

The  Deep  Down  mine,  was  originally  located  by  two  pros- 
pectors, Bechtol  and  Foy.  This  property  passed  through 
various  hands  and  recently  was  organized  by  H.  O.  Bursum, 
Governor  M.  A.  Otero  and  A.  R.  Burkdoll,  into  the  B.  O.  B. 
Mining  Company.  This  property  has  much  to  recommend 
it,  and  has  already  produced  $75,000,  which  came  from  near 
the  surface. 

A  15-stamp  mill  with  about  1,300  feet  of  work  constitutes 
the  principal  development.  The  ore  is  principally  free  mil- 
ling gold  and  silver;  however,  baser  ores  have  frequently 
been  encountered. 

Lying  just  to  the  west  of  the  Deep  Down  property  is  the 
Maud  S.  group  of  three  patented  claims — the  Maud  S.,  the 
Link  and  the  Wilson.  The  Colonial  Mining  Company  own 
this  property;  the  production  has  been  $750,000.  This  prop- 
erty has  been  idle  for  over  two  years. 

The  Last  Chance  is  another  noted  property  and  its  produc- 
tion is  estimated  at  $250,000. 

There  is  a  20-stamp  cyanide  mill  on  this  property;  owing 
to  some  necessary  improvements  in  the  machinery  the  plant 
was  closed  down  during  1903. 

Of  the  numerous  producers  of  the  Cooney  district,  the 
Little  Fannie  group  stands  at  the  head  of  the  list.  The  pro- 
duction is  approximated  at  $1,250,000.  Owing  to  litigation 
the  mine  has  been  closed  down  for  several  years.  A  15- 
stamp  pan-amalgamation  mill  is  on  the  property. 

Among  other  properties  noted  for  their  production  and 
development  may  be  mentioned  the  Eberle  group,  Kat  and 
Kitten  mine,  Contention  group,  Grey  Hawk,  Copper  Queen 
group  and  Leap  Year.  Numerous  other  locations  exist  in 
the  district,  some  of  which  will  no  doubt  prove  valuable 
when  properly  developed. 

The  total  production  of  the  Cooney  district  up  to  January 
1,  1904,  is  approximately  $4,650,000.  The  ores  of  the  dis- 
trict are  gold,  silver  and  copper;  the  principal  production  of 
the  camp,  until  recently,  has  been  from  the  gold  and  silver 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS.  135 

ores:  pan  amalgamation  and  cyaniding  being  the  general 
methods  of  treatment. 

The  Mill  of  the  Mogollon  Gold  and  Copper  Company  is 
strictly  one  of  concentration. 

The  Cooney  mining  district  lies  in  the  Mogollon  mountains 
in  the  extreme  western  part  of  Socorro  county  about  fifteen 
miles  east  of  the  Arizona  line.  Beginning  near  the  western 
boundary  of  the  territory,  this  range  of  mountains  extends 
in  nearly  a  north-south  line  for  a  distance  of  about  ninety 
miles,  diverging  slightly  from  the  Arizona  line  in  passing  to 
the  south. 

The  western  slope  of  the  range  is  traversed  by  a  number 
of  deep  canyons  having  their  drainage  in  the  Rio  San  Fran- 
cisco. 

On  the  eastern  slopes  the  drainage  is  in  the  Gila  river. 
The  whole  of  this  great  water  shed  has  been  set  aside  by  an 
Act  of  Congress  as  the  Gila  Forest  Reserve. 

It  is  observed  that  all  the  principal  mines  and  mineraliza- 
tion is  on  the  west  flank  of  the  range  and  not  far  from  the 
foot  of  the  main  mountain  slope. 

There  are  three  recognized  mining  districts  in  the  Mogo- 
llon mountains,  the  Cooney,  the  Wilcox  and  the  Tellurium. 

The  most  important  and  northerly  of  these  is  the  Cooney. 
Generally  speaking,  the  formations  are  all  of  a  volcanic  type. 
The  flows,  in  many  instances,  lie  nearly  horizontal,  while 
others  have  been  tilted  until  they  approach  perpendicularity. 
Andesites  seem  to  be  the  predominating  type  of  these  vol- 
canic rocks;  while  trachytes,  rhyolites  and  basalts  occur  more 
sparingly.  In  many  of  the  deeper  canyons  granite-por- 
phyries are  exposed,  which  would  suggest  that  the  basal 
granite  is  not  far  below. 

There  are  two  general  systems  of  veins  which  cross  each 
other  nearly  at  right  angles.  The  King  and  Queen  lodes  are 
the  most  prominent  in  the  district;  paralleling  each  other, 
they  may  be  traced  through  a  distance  of  ten  miles.  The 
Queen  lode  lies  to  the  east  of  the  King;  the  width  of  these  two 
lodes  varies  from  ten  to  thirty-five  feet  and  each  of  them  dips 
to  the  east. 

The  King  lode,  though  a  fissure,  is  properly  a  great  faulted 
fractured  zone,  with  numerous  branches  extending  out  from 


136  NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS. 

it  on  either  side.  These  off-shoot  or  branch  veins  are  the  re- 
sult due  to  the  stress  in  shearing. 

Much  of  the  vein  stuff  is  brecciated,  altered  country  rock, 
impregnated  with  the  oxides  of  iron,  carrying  values  in  free 
gold  and  cerargyrite. 

The  Queen  lode  is  a  true  fissure  as  indicated  by  it  cutting 
through  all  formations  and  in  its  banded  structure.  The  gan- 
gue  matter  is  principally  a  combination  of  white  and  ribbon 
quartz.  The  dark  grey  bands  of  the  ribbon  quartz  are  rich 
in  argentite;  the  whiter  quartz  carry  values  in  free  gold. 

The  character  of  the  veins  lying  between  the  parent  lodes 
vary  through  the  forms  of  a  contact  shattered  zone,  contact 
lissure,  fault  fissure  and  true  fissure. 

The  Confidence  and  Last  Chance  vein  cuts  the  King  lode; 
this  with  the  Maud  S.,  Little  Fannie  and  Grand  View  lodes 
are  properly  contact  fissures.  The  principal  production  of 
the  camp  is  due  to  these  contact  leads. 

A  beautiful  example  of  fault  fissure  occurrs  in  the  Florida 
and  Golden  Eagle  lode;  the  displacement  is,  perhaps.  130  feet. 
This. fault  line  cuts  the  King  lode  at  an  angle  of  about  45 J; 
its  strike  is  approximately  southeast  and  northwest. 

Wilcox   District. 

This  district  lies  to  the  southeast  of  Cooney  about  fifteen 
miles,  and  was  discovered  in  the  fall  of  1879  by  William  Wil- 
cox, who  was  killed  on  April  29,  1880,  the  day  before  the 
killing  of  J.  C.  Cooney.  There  is  no  direct  way  of  getting 
across  the  mountains  from  Cooney  to  the  Wilcox  and  Tel- 
lurim  districts,  excepting  by  burro  trail.  Generally  the 
trip.is  made  from  Cliff  post-office;  going  about  fifteen  miles 
to  the  north  and  bearing  slightly  to  the  west. 

This  district  has  been  known  a  number  of  years,  yet  com- 
paratively little  development  has  been  done.  The  Zacaton 
group  is  the  most  prominent  of  the  locations.  Some  ore  was 
shipped  from  this  property  about  1900,  but  the  long  haul  to 
Silver  city  consumed  the  profits. 

The  Silver  Prize,  I.  S.,  Western  Star,  Uncle  John  and  the 
Butterfly  group  constitute  the  more  important  locations. 

The  character  of  the  ore  of  the  district  is  principally  a  si- 
liceous sulphide  carrying  gold  and  silver.  An  exception  to 


NKW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS.  137 

this  is  found  in  the  Zacaton  group  which  carries  copper 
carbonate,  in  several  of  the  locations.  The  Little  Jessie  has 
some  very  heavy  iron  oxide  ores,  through  which  chalcopy- 
rite  is  disseminated. 

In  a  general  sense  the  formations  are  all  eruptive  in  char- 
acter and  resemble  those  of  the  Cooney  district. 

Tellurium    District. 

Very  little  has  ever  been  done  to  justify  this  selection  as  a 
distinct  mining  district. 

It  lies  immediatly  north  of  the  Wilcox  district  about  three 
miles,  and  has  no  distinctive  features  from  that  district.  It 
is  said  that  some  very  rich  pieces  of  Tellurium  float  were 
found  there  a  number  of  years  ago;  hence,  the  name 
"Tellurium." 

Tellurium  No.  1,  and  No.  2  and  the  Pine  hill  claims  owned 
by  E.  Peterson,  of  Mogollon,  are  the  most  promising 
prospects. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 


MORENO  AND  WESTERN   COLFAX  COUNTY  DIS- 
TRICTS. 

The  mining  districts  of  Moreno,  Willow  Creek,  Ute  Creek, 
and  Ponil  can  best  be  discussed  in  the  aggregate,  since  they 
all  lie  on  the  immediate  slopes  of  Elizabeth  peak  (Baldy)  and 
their  minerals  and  mineralization  have  their  origin  in  that 
great  isolated  mountain.  Elizabeth  peak  (Baldy),  according 
to  Lieutenant  Wheeler  in  the  United  States  Geographical 
Survey  West  of  the  100th  Meridian,  reaches  an  altitude  of 
12,491  feet  above  sea  level;  this  elevation  is  exceeded  only  in 
a  few  instances  in  the  territory. 

The  writer  has  been  very  fortunate  in  having  opportun- 
ities to  familiarize  himself,  to  a  certain  degree,  with  this 
section  of  the  country.  The  beginning  of  this  experience 
dates  back  to  the  fall  of  1893,  in  making  a  railway  survey, 
under  the  supervision  of  Ed.  H.  Smith,  now  of  Las  Vegas, 
from  the  Santa  Fe  tracks  at  Maxwell  City,  as  far  west  as 
the  valley  of  the  Rio  Grande.  The  line  of  this  proposed  rail- 
road was  through  Cimarron,  up  the  Cimarron  canyon, 
through  the  gateway  of  the  Moreno  valley,  where  a  branch 
line  ran  north  from  this  point  to  Elizabethtown  and  into  the 
Red  River  country.  The  main  line,  however,  kept  the 
Moreno  valley  south  and  crossed  over  the  range  at  the  Taos 
Pass,  thence  to  Taos  and  from  there  down  a  boxed  canyon  to 
the  Rio  Grande. 

Every  facility  was  afforded  to  examine  into  the  mineral  re- 
sources during  this  survey.  Topographical  maps  and  .geo- 
logical sketches  were  made  extending  over  a  wide  area  of 
country,  which  embraced  the  mining  districts  flanking 
Elizabeth  peak  (Baldy  mountain)  and  westward  to  Red  river. 

A  geological  section  of  the  country,  from  a  point  east  of 
Elizabeth  peak  to  a  point  three  miles  west  of  Elizabethtown, 
was  made  at  that  time. 

The  geologic  section  best  observed  and  studied  is  in  theCim- 


NEW   MEXICO   MINES  AND   MINERALS.  139 

arron  canyon,  that  forms  the  narrow  gorge  and  exposes  the 
rocks  to  a  thousand  feet  in  depth  on  either  side.  The  lower 
canyon,  extending  from  near  the  town  of  Cimarron  to  Ute 
Creek  park,  is  about  twelve  miles  long  and  is  entirely  eroded 
in  the  thick  bed  of  the  Laramie  coal  measures;  and  which 
has,  apparently,  cut  entirely  through  this  latter  series,  since 
the  Colorado  shales  of  the  Cretaceous  are  exposed  at  both 
ends  of  this  part  of  the  canyon.  The  upper  canyon  of  the 
Cimarron,  from  Ute  Creek  park  to  the  Moreno  valley  is  ap- 
proximately six  miles  in  length,  cutting  through  theArchean 
rocks  and  draining  the  great  ancient  lake  of  the  Moreno 
valley.  Recent  development,  it  is  understood,  proves  the 
existence  of  coal  in  the  Moreno  basin;  its  quality  and  extent 
is  undetermined  at  the  present  writing. 

In  following  up  Ute  Creek  toward  its  source  from  its 
affluence  with  the  Cimarron,  it  is  observed  that  erosion  of 
this  stream  is  now  in  the  Colorado  shales. 

At  the  west  side  of  the  Ute  valley  are  two  intrusive  por- 
phyritic  members,  which  disappear  toward  the  northwest  as 
they  pass  into  the  eastern  and  steeper  portion  of  Baldy  moun- 
tain. Still  further  west  is  another  porphyry  member  which 
has  carried  with  it  in  its  upward  movement  the  Dakota  sand- 
stones. 

On  the  east  side  of  Ute  valley  is  an  escarpment  of  the  light 
colored  sandstones  of  the  Laramie  coal  measures. 

This  sandstone  may  be  traced  on  that  side  of  Ute  Creek  un- 
til it  reaches  the  saddle  which  divides  the  South  Ponil  from 
the  latter  stream.  From  this  saddle  the  same  series  rises 
and  covers  the  steep  east  slope  of  the  mountain,  even  reach- 
ing and  capping  the  very  summit  of  the  peak. 

The  sandstone,  however,  above  the  saddle  to  the  top  of  the 
mountain  is  altered  to  massive  quartzite. 

The  elevatory  movement,  which  resulted  in  forming  Eliza- 
beth peak  (Baldy),  must  have  taken  place  at  the  beginning  of 
the  Tertiary.  The  origin  of  the  mountain  is  due  to  the  mas- 
sive porphyritic  sheets  which  have  been  forced  upward  be- 
tween and  through  the  thick  beds  of  the  Cretaceous.  On  the 
southwest  side  of  Baldy  in  the  vicinity  of  the  Willow  Creek 
placers,  Cretaceous  shales  and  limestones  are  superficially 
exposed.  The  cause  of  this  exposure  is  due  to  the  shattered 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS.  141 

condition  of  the  strata  that  were  elevated  by  the  porphyritic 
intrusives  and  which  favored  more  rapid  erosion.  In  passing 
toward  Elizabeth  town  from  the  Willow  Creek  placers,  erup- 
tives  of  a  porphyritic  nature  occur  immediately  to  the  west 
of  the  gravel  wash  on  Willow  gulch. 

Beyond  and  west  of  Elizabethtown  are  some  exposures  of 
the  Permian  and  Jura-Trias.  These  latter  series  seem  to 
rest  immediately  on  the  Archean  core  at  Comanche  canyon. 

The  whole  of  the  area  immediately  flanking  Elizabeth  peak 
(Baldy)  may  be  regarded  as  one  vast  placer  field.  The  prin- 
cipal operations  in  placer  mining  have  been  conducted  in  the 
localities  of  Ute  creek,  lying  on  the  southeast  slope  of  Baldy; 
at  Willow  creek  gulch,  lying  on  the  southwest  slope;  and  the 
Moreno  fields  lying  on  the  western  slope  in  the  vicinity  of 
Elizabethtown. 

These  placer  fields  are  the  most  extensive  and  have  ex- 
celled in  production  those  of  any  other  placers  in  New  Mex- 
ico. They  are  today  producing  over  one  quarter  of  the  gold 
of  the  territory.  To  their  success  is  due  the  fame  of  the  dis- 
tricts. 

Indirectly,  the  discovery  of  gold  in  this  part  of  New  Mex- 
ico is  due  to  a  Ute  Indian  who  brought  in  a  piece  of  rich  cop- 
per float  and  exhibited  it  at  Port  Union,  during  one  of  his 
trading  expeditions,  in  the  early  part  of  the  sixties  of  the 
past  century. 

The  real  discovery  of  gold  in  the  Moreno  valley,  however, 
dates  to  October,  1866,  when  three  men — Larry  Bronson, 
-  Kelly,  and  Peter  Kinsinger — were  sent  by  William 
Kroenig,  W.  H.  Moore  and  others,  from  Fort  Union  to  do  as- 
sessment work  on  a  copper  property,  near  the  top  of  Eliza- 
beth peak  (Baldy  mountain),  which  had  previously  been  lo- 
cated as  a  result  of  the  find  of  the  Ute  Indian.  This  trio  ar- 
rived on  Willow  creek  late  one  afternoon  and  after  arrange- 
ments for  camping  had  been  made,  Kelly  took  a  gold  pan  and 
commenced  washing  the  gravel  along  the  edge  of  the  stream, 
while  the  other  two  prepared  supper. 

The  first  pan  of  dirt  revealed  several  colors  of  gold.  Call- 
ing to  his  companions  and  announcing  his  find,  all  three 
began  to  pan  and  dig,  when  to  their  astonishment  gold  was 
obtained  from  most  every  pan  of  dirt.  Several  days  were 


.142  NEW    MEXICO   MINES  AND   MINERALS. 

spent  in  digging,  running  open  cuts  and  panning  with  very 
satisfactory  results.  It  being  late  in  the  season  and  the 
weather  extremely  cold,  they  gave  up  further  prospecting 
until  the  following  spring— forgetting,  in  the  meantime,  to 
do  the  work  which  they  had  set  out  to  do,  at  the  beginning 
of  their  mission.  It  was  the  intention  of  the  discoverers  to 
keep  the  find  a  secret  after  their  return  to  Fort  Union. 

But  secrecy  could  not  be  kept;  the  desire  to  exhibit  the 
coarse  gold  saved  by  their  pannings  was  irresistible.  At 
the  opening  of  spring  in  1867,  the  excitement  was  so  in- 
tense that  the  news  of  the  find  was  spread  over  both  New 
Mexico  and  Colorado.  A  great  stampede  was  made  to  this 
Eldorado  from  all  over  the  west.  Bronson  on  returning  to 
the  diggings  made  several  locations  on  the  site  of  the  original 
discovery,  on  Willow  creek,  for  himself  and  partners.  These 
locations  were  all  measured  from  a  big  pine  tree  which  was 
the  initial  monument,  on  which  all  courses  and  distances 
were  based.  This  tree  is  known  as  the  "discovery  tree" 
and  is  now  standing,  April  1,  1904. 

Numerous  claims  were  staked  during  the  first  rush; 
among  the  new  comers  were  Mathew  Lynch  and  Tim  Foley 
who  made  locations  on  the  south  or  opposite  side  of  the 
gulch.  These  latter  gentlemen,  especially  Mr.  Lynch, played 
an  important  part  in  the  early  history  and  development  of 
the  surrounding  gold  fields.  To  them  is  due  the  discovery  of 
the  famous  Aztec  mine,  on  the  east  side  of  the  range. 
Mathew  Lynch,  with  one  or  two  minor  exceptions,  is  to  be 
regarded  as  the  father  of  hydraulic  mining  in  New  Mexico. 
His  efforts  were  very  successful;  running  from  three  to  four 
hydraulics  each  season,  up  to  the  time  of  his  death,  which 
occurred  in  1880,  by  a  tree  falling  on  him. 

About  the  time  of  the  first  locations  on  Willow  creek,  a 
second  party  from  Fort  Union  arrived,  and  made  the  first 
discovery  of  gold  at  Elizabethtown.  This  party  was  com- 
posed of  J.  E.  Codlin,  Pat  Lyons,  Fred  Phefer  and  Big  Mich, 
who  termed  themselves  the  Michigan  Company. 

After  the  discovery  at  Elizabethtown,  prospecting  became 
general,  and  it  was  demonstrated  that  gold  in  paying  quan- 
tities existed  in  most  every  gulch  around  Baldy  mountain. 

Tom  Lothian,  Dick  Turpin  and  John  G.  Schumann  were 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS. 


143 


the  first  to  make  locations  hi  Grouse  gulch.  Across  the  Mo- 
reno river,  just  in  front  of  Grouse  gulch  are  the  famous 
Spanish  Bar  diggings,  which  were  located  by  Lowthian,  Kin- 
singer  and  Bergmann. 

Humbug  gulch  was  located  from  the  Moreno  river,  almost 
to  its  head.  This  latter  gulch  probably  received  its  name 
from  the  supposition  that  it  carried  but  little  gold.  Subse- 
quent prospecting  proved  it  to  be  the  richest  gulch  in  the 
district. 


Fig.  25-MATHEW  LYNCH,   PIONEER   HYDRAULIC   MINER  OF   ELIZA- 

BETHTOWN,  AND  THE  ONLY  SUCCESSFUL  OPERATOR 

OF  THE  "BIG  DITCH." 

Owing  to  the  great  influx  of  people  into  the  new  gold  field, 
and  in  order  to  properly  protect  the  rights  of  each  individual, 
it  became  necessary  to  establish  and  organize  a  town.  The 
prime  movers  in  this  direction  were  John  Moore,  George 
Buck,  and  a  few  others;  the  survey  and  plat  were  made  by  T. 
G.  Rowe  in  1867.  Much  discussion  arose  as  to  what  the  new 
town  would  be  called;  finally  the  name  Elizabeth  was  decided 
on,  in  honor  of  Mr.  Moore's  eldest  daughter,  who  is  now 


144  NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS. 

Mrs.  Joseph  Lowrey  and  is  still  a*  resident  of  the  town  which 
bears  her  name.  As  a  matter  of  history,  when  Colfax  county 
was  first  carved  out  of  Mora  county  and  organized,  Elizabeth- 
town  became  its  first  county  seat;  it  also,  bears  the  distinc- 
tion of  being  the  first  incorporated  town  of  New  Mexico. 

It  was  realized  in  the  first  years  existence  of  the  Moreno 
district  that  an  ample  water  supply  to  work  the  new  fields 
successfully  was  of  prime  importance. 

Parties  from  Las  Vegas  and  Fort  Union  took  the  water 
question  in  hand,  and  employed  Capt.  N.  S.  Davis,  an  En- 
gineer of  the  U.  S.  Army,  to  make  surveys  and  report  on  the 
feasibility  of  increasing  the  supply. 

Surveys  showed  that  a  large  supply  of  water  could  be 
brought  around  to  the  new  fields  by  diverting  the  water  from 
Red  river,  which  was  about  eleven  miles  west  of  Elizabeth- 
town. 

Accordingly  the  Moreno  Water,  and  Mining  Company  was 
organized  and  %  B.  Maxwell,  William  Kroenig,  John  Bold, 
W.  H.  Moore,  V.  S.  Shelby.  M.  Bloomfield  and  Capt.  N.  S. 
Davis,  composed  the  original  members  of  the  company. 

The  survey  was  finished  and  actual  construction  began  on 
May  12,  1868.  Work  was  pushed  with  all  possible  vigor  up 
to  November  13th,  and  the  ditch  was  practically  completed 
during  that  short  period;  as  many  as  420  men  were  on  the 
work  at  one  time.  Considering  the  magnitude  of  the  enter- 
prise and  the  difficulties  to  overcome,  this  is  regarded  as  the 
most  remarkable  engineering  feat  ever  accomplished  in  the 
west.  The  flume  in  many  places  is  suspended,  for  long  dis- 
tances, from  perpendicular  walls,  deep  arroyos  were  bridged 
and  in  one  place  the  aqueduct  crossed  over  a  valley  seventy - 
nine  feet  above  the  earth,  requiring  over  2,300  feet  of  trestle. 
The  ditch  from  its  head  to  Grouse  gulch  at  Elizabethtown,  is 
41  miles  and  660  feet  long,  with  a  carrying  capacity  of  600 
miners-inches*,  or  9,720,000  gallons  every  twenty-four  hours. 

*It  should  be  noted  that  a  miner's  inch  of  water  is  not  a  definite  or  fixed  quantity, 
but  varies  in  different  states  and  localities.  Bowie's  Treatise  on  Hydraulic  Mining, 
page  268,  states  that  in  different  counties  in  California,  it  ranges  from  1.20  to  1.76  cubic 
feet  per  minute.  In  Montana  it  is  1.25  cubic  feet.  The  writer  has  always  taken  1.50 
cubic  feet,  per  minute,  for  a  miners-inch  in  New  Mexico. 

A  miners-inch  in  New  Mexico  may,  therefore,  be  defined  as  that  quantity  of  water 
which  will  flow  through  a  vertical  orifice  one  inch  square,  when  the  head  on  the  cen- 
ter of  the  orifice  is  Clinches.  By  calculation  it  is  found  that  water  flowing  under 
this  condition,  will  discharge  1.53  cubic  feet,  during  one  minute  of  time. 

One  cubic  foot  of  water  equals  7.481  U.  S.  gallons  and  weighs  62.5  Ibs.  One  U.  S. 
gallon  weighs  8. 355  Ibs.  and  contains  231  cubic  inches. 


NEW    MEXICO   MINES    AND    MINERALS.  145 

The  original  cost  was  $210,000;  an  additional  expenditure 
<>t  si'0,000  was  made  in  constructing  storage  reservoirs  at  the 
headwaters  of  Red  river. 

Martin  and  Scott  received  the  first  water  delivered  by  the 
ditch,  on  their  property  in  Humbug  gulch,  July  9,  1869. 

The  Moreno  Water  and  Mining  Company  constructed  the 
ditch  as  a  water  speculation,  and  expected  to  sell  water  at 
such  a  figure  as  to  pay  a  handsome  dividend,  since  the  com- 
pany did  not  have  any  placers  of  its  own  to  work. 

The  first  water  sold  for  50  cents  a  miners-inch;  owing  to 
losses  by  leakage  and  evaporation  and  the  great  expense  in 
maintenance,  the  company  became  financially  embarrassed 
and  the  property  passed  into  the  hands  of  Col.  V.  S.  Shelby 
of  Santa  Fe,  who  had  loaned  large  sums  of  money  used  in  the 
construction. 

Shortly  afterwards  Shelby  sold  to  L.  B.  Maxwell,  the 
owner  of  the  famous  Maxwell  land  grant  and  one  of  the 
original  members  of  the  old  water  company.  Mathew  Lynch 
purchased  the  ditch  from  Maxwell  in  the  summer  of  1875. 

Mr.  Lynch  operated  the  ditch  successfully  until  his  death 
in  1880;  the  property  then  passed  into  the  hands  of  his  two 
brothers,  James  and  Patrick  Lynch,  who  operated  it  for  a 
number  of  years.  This  noted  ditch  is  generally  known  as 
the  "big  ditch,"  though  now  it  is  practically  inoperative  f  mm 
want  of  repairs;  the  probability  is  that  it  will  never  be  used 
again  as  a  water  carrier  for  mining  purposes. 

In  1867,  Joseph  Lowrey  came  to  the  Moreno  valley,  where 
he  works  placers,  i  by  hydraulicing,  just  opposite  Eliza- 
bethtown,  at  the  present  time;  this  ground  is  known  as  the 
Lowrey  placers. 

It  is  estimated  that  $2,250,000  of  gold  has  come  from  the 
placer  fields  about  Baldy  mountain  from  the  time  of  their 
discovery  in  1866  to  January  1,  1904;  the  average  fineness 
of  the  gold  is  885. 

Owing  to  the  angular  form  of  most  the  gravels  in  the  dis- 
tricts, adjacent  to  the  foot  of  Elizabeth  peak  (Baldy),  it  is 
practically  conclusive  that  the  material  has  not  been  trans- 
ported from  any  great  distance.  The  theory  has  been  ad- 
vanced that  no  very  rich  lodes  (with  two  or  three  exceptions) 
have  ever  been  found  in  the  mountain  and  that  such  enormous 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS.  Ii7 

quantities  of  gold  as  exist  in  the  placer  area  must  have  come 
from  some  other  source.  The  form  of  the  gravels  and  the 
altitude  at  which  gold  is  found  on  the  mountain  slopes,  with  the 
character  of  gold  in  the  various  districts,  would  preclude  any 
theory,  other  than  that  the  gold  came  out  of  Baldy  mountain. 
The  lodes  about  Baldy  mountain  were,  perhaps,  superficial 
in  depth  originally,  as  the  Aztec  and  other  rich  veins  indi- 
cate, and  the  enormous  erosion  has  long  since  carried  away 
the  best  mineralized  part  of  the  mountain  and  concentrated 
the  value  in  the  placers  below7. 

Over  on  the  east  side  of  the  range  at  the  head  waters  of 
Ute  creek  is  where  the  coarsest  gold  is  found.  This  may. 
easily  be  accounted  for,  since  the  Aztec  lode  is  just  above  or 
at  the  point  where  Ute  creek  heads,  and  which  lode  is  un- 
questionably the  source  of  this  coarse  gold.  One  nugget* 
weighing  a  fraction  less  than  twelve  ounces  was  found  a  few 
years  ago,  just  below  the  source  of  the  creek.  It  should  be 
remembered  that  the  Aztec  mine  has  produced  many  large 
nuggets  of  gold,  found  in  the  quartz,  at  the  time  the  mine 
was  worked.  Over  on  the  south  Ponil  from  the  Aztec  are 
also  found  nuggets  and  coarse  placer  gold.  The  Aztec  mine 
being  on  a  ridge  separating  the  two  streams,  would  easily 
account  for  the  gold  found  on  both  sides  of  the  ridge. 

Of  the  several  producing  districts  and  gulches  of  the  Baldy 
mountain  section,  more  gold  is  now  being  recovered  from 
the  Moreno  river,  just  below  ELizabethtown.  than  all  of  the 
other  diggings  combined.  In  fact,  one-fourth  of  the  gold  of 
New  Mexico  is  now  being  taken  from  this  little  stream  by  the 
Oro  Dredging  Company,  under  the  successful  management 
of  R.  J.  Reiling. 

This  piece  of  machinery  began  operation  on  September 
19,  1901,  and  is  complete  in  every  detail,  being  especially  de- 
signed and  constructed  for  working  the  gravels  of  this 
stream. 

The  material  is  elevated  by  a  system  of  buckets  and  dump- 
ed into  revolving  screens  where  the  larger  stones  are  separ- 
ated. As  the  coarse  material  passes  through  the  screens  it 
is  washed  thoroughly  with  jets  of  \vater,  and  the  mass  of 

*This  nugget  forms  a  part  of  the  collection  of  gold  nuggets  of  the  Maxwell  Land 
Grant  Company. 


148 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES  AND    MINERALS. 


finer  gravels  sand  and  mud  is  forced  by  a  heavy  torrent  of 
water  into  a  Jong  iron  flume  or  sluice  box.  In  this  sluice  box 
is  placed  a  suitable  false  bottom  and  several  pounds  of 
quicksilver  are  distributed  in  the  riffles,  in  a  manner  similar 
to  that  of  the  ordinary  wooden  sluice  box. 


v 


Fig.  27-DREDGE  OF  THE  ORO  DREDGING  COMPANY,    OPERATING 
IN  THE  MORENO  RIVER  AT  ELIZABETHTOWN. 

The  process  after  the  material  is  elevated,  is  identically 
the  same  as  is  practiced  in  ordinary  hydraulic  sluicing;  that 
is,  forming  riffles  in  the  sluice  and  amalgamating  by  the  use 
of  liquid  mercury.  Clean-ups  are  made  about  once  every 
week  and  the  product  is  retorted  in  the  usual  manner. 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS.  149 

The  capacity  of  this  dredge  is  4,500  cubic  yards  per  24 
hours;  although  the  average  daily  amount  handled  is  about 
3,000  cubic  yards,  This  machine  can  successfully  work  a 
gravel  bank  25  feet  in  thickness  and  can  excavate  with  ease 
15  feet  below  the  surface  of  the  water. 

Next  to  this  dredge  in  production  is  the  hydraulic  plant  of 
Joseph  Lowrey,  who  has  been  operating  every  season  for 
over  thirty  years. 

Other  placers  in  the  Monero  district,  beside  those  of  the 
Oro  Dredging  Company  and  Joseph  Lowrey,  are  worked  in  a 
small  way.  The  Lynch  Brothers  have  not  operated  placers 
for  several  years. 

In  Willow  creek  district,  the  more  prominent  grounds  are 
the  Kaiser  diggings,  Last  Chance  and  Grub  Flat  placers,  and 
the  Brown  diggings. 

On  the  Ute  creek  side  are  the  Pierson  and  Mead  diggings 
and  the  Major  Dennison  placers. 

Across  the  south  Ponil  are  the  Wallace  placers.  Among 
the  phenomenal  gold  strikes  in  New  Mexico,  the  Aztec  lode 
deserves  special  mention. 

Mathew  Lynch  and  Tim  Foley,  after  making  some  loca- 
tions in  Willow  gulch,  crossed  over  the  range  to  the  east  side, 
where  they  found  rich  float  and  coarse  gold  at  or  near  the 
head  waters  of  Ute  creek;  this  was  in  the  summer  of  1867. 
These  two  gentlemen  worked  assiduously  for  about  one  year 
in  tracing  the  rich  float  to  its  source.  Finally  in  June,  1868, 
they  uncovered  the  Aztec  lode.  This  was  said  to  have  been 
the  richest  discovery  made  in  the  west,  of  gold  from  a  vein 
or  lode.  As  previously  mentioned,  this  mine  is  at  the  foot  of 
Baldy  mountain  on  a  little  ridge  which  separates  Ute  creek 
from  south  Pofitl.  The  Aztec  lode  is  a  contact  between  shale- 
slate  and  quartzite.  In  other  words  its  geological  horizon 
is  in  the  cretaceous  shales  which  immediately  underlie  the 
Laramie  coal  measures.  This  is,  perhaps,  the  most  singular 
occurrence  of  gold,  when  considered  from  a  geological  stand- 
point, of  anything  in  the  west. 

The  strike  of  this  vein  at  the  surface  is  about  N.  40  \V. 
and  dips  to  the  northeast  about  75 :,  to  a  depth  of  90  feet. 

Below  the  90-foot  level  the  dip  almost  attains  horizontality 


150  NEW    MEXICO   MINES   AND   MINERALS. 

and  conforms  closely  to  the  contour  of  the  hill.  The  strike 
also  changes  to  about  N.  70°  W. 

The  original  ore  was  of  a  brown  color,  due  to  the  oxidation 
of  pyrites;  the  gold  being  remarkably  free  milling. 

A  15-stamp  mill  was  immediately  erected  and  operations 
began  on  the  29th  day  of  October,  1868. 

The  mine  was  successfully  operated  between  three  and 
four  years  time,  and  was  closed  down  in  1872  on  account  of 
litigation.  The  principal  rich  ore  bodies  were,  however, 
worked  out  during  that  period.  The  mine  since  that  time  has 
been  spasmodically  worked,  though  never  successfully  in  a 
general  sense.  The  production  to  date  is  estimated  at  about 
$1,250,000;  about  $1,000,000  of  this  was  mined  prior  to  1872. 

Many  promising  lode  claims  exist  in  the  different  districts 
which  surround  Elizabeth  peak  (Baldy).  In  the  Ponil  dis- 
trict is  the  noted  French  Henry  mine;  it  being  the  first  claim 
located  in  this  district.  Among  others  are  the  Smuggler, 
Guerilla,  Mountain  Witch,  Paymaster  group,  Black  Joe,  Harry 
Bluff,  Harry  Lyons  group  and  the  Mount  Vernon. 

In  the  Ute  creek  district  may  be  mentioned  some  of  the 
more  prominent  lodes,  as  the  Thelma,  Montezuma,  Black 
Horse  group.  Rebel  Chief  group.  Maid  of  Erin,  Rosita,  Puz- 
zler, Monarch,  Homestake,  Bull-of-the-Woods,  Paragon,  Little 
Jessie,  Sweepstakes  and  Real. 

The  Willow  creek  district  has  several  producing  and  prom- 
ising lode  properties  such  as:  The  Golden  Ajax,  Legal  Ten- 
der, Hidden  Treasure,  Golden  Dollar,  Ophir,  Only  Chance, 
North  and  East  Pacific,  Grand  View,  Mystic,  Victor,  Indiana, 
Alababa,  Little  Wonder,  Grand  Duchess,  Mark  Twain  group 
and  Aristocrat. 

The  most  important  group  of  lode  claims  in  the  Moreno 
district  is  the  Red  Bandana.  The  names  of  the  leads  com- 
posing the  group  are  the  Red  Bandana,  Empire,  Moreno, 
Centennial,  Galena,  and  American  Flag. 

This  property  is  extensively  developed  with  over  2,000  feet 
of  work,  with  5-foot  Huntington  mill,  engines,  boilers  and 
shaft-house.  Since  the  property  lies  on  the  ridge  which 
separates*"  Grouse  gulch  from  Humbug  gulch,  it  is  quite 
evident  that  the  Red  Bandana  lodes  contributed  a  very  great 
part  of  the  gold  found  in  those  gulches.  The  formation  con- 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS.  151 

sists  of  slate,  quartzite,  porphyry,  granite,  serpentine  and 
limestone;  the  strike  of  this  series  being  east  and  west.  The 
veins  of  the  group  run  approximately  northeast  and  south- 
west, cutting  all  formations;  hence,  they  would  be  of  the  true 
fissure  type.  Near  the  surface  the  ore  is  free  milling;  but 
changes  to  a  sulphide  at  depth.  Other  prominent  properties 
are  the  Abraham  Lincoln,  Heart-of-the- World,  Iron  Mask, 
North  Star,  The  Baldy  Mountain  Tunnel  group,  Bob-ta  1 
Senate,  Penuckle  group,  Imperial  No.  2,  Sheridan,  Golden 
Era,  Gold  Leaf,  and  Admiral  Dewey  in  Big  Nigger  gulch. 

West  Moreno  (Hematite)  District. , 

Lying  northwest  of  Elizabethtown  about  five  miles  and  to 
the  left  of  the  road  in  going  toward  Red  river,  is  the  west 
Moreno  or  Hematite  district.  This  district  lies  in  the  ex- 
treme western  part  of  Colfax  county  and  took  its  name  from 
the  highly  colored  formations  and  veins,  due  to  the  red  oxide 
of  iron.  The  Archean  nucleus  is  well  represented  along 
the  lower  part  of  Hematite  creek,  having  an  exposure  of 
more  than  a  mile  in  width.  Many  mining  claims  have  been 
staked  out  along  this  gulch  and  especially  further  to  the 
west,  where  the  country  is  crossed  by  a  parallel  belt  of  por- 
phyritic  eruptives,  and  highly  altered  slates.  Some  placer 
gold  is  found  along  the  gulches,  though  not  enough  to  justify 
profitable  working. 

Development  has  not  been  very  extensive;  the  ores  being- 
refractory  and  usually  low  grade,  the  excitement  which 
attended  the  first  discoveries  has  now  died  out  completely. 
The  camp  was  practically  deserted  during  the  writer's  visit 
in  June,  1908;  notwithstandng,  a  number  of  very  favorable 
prospects  are  kept  alive  by  outsiders  who  do  their  annual 
assessments. 

The  most  favorable  properties  are  the  Black  Wizard  group, 
Iron  Bird,  Challenge,  Kentucky,  Last  Chance  and  Gold  Belle. 

Hematite  creek  flows  east  into  West  fork  and  thus  aids  in 
forming  the  west  prong  of  Moreno  river. 

Urraca  and    Bonito  District. 

This  district  is  in  Colfax  county  and  is  situated  about  ten 
miles  southwest  of  Cimarron.  During  the  summer  of 


152  NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS. 

a  man  by  the  name  of  Craig  found  some  ore  that  gave  a  very 
high  assay  value,  but  nothing  further  has  been  heard.  Some 
placer  gold  is  found  in  the  gulches  in  the  vicinity  of  Urraca 
creek,  which  may  eventually  be  worked. 

Cimarroncito    District. 

This  is  substantially  the  same  as  that  of  Urraca  and  Bonito, 
as  above  mentioned.  Very  little  attention  has  been  given  this 
section,  except  in  a  very  superficial  way. 

The  country  is  considerably  broken  by  eruptive  dikes  and 
porphyritic  intrusives,  which  have  induced  mineralization  in 
a  more  or  less  degree  in  certain  localities.  Some  veins, 
apparently  of  a  fissure  type,  seem  to  have  the  most  favorable 
showing. 

'  Among  the  latter  are  the  Mocking  Bird  group  and  the  Big 
Missouri  No.  "2. 

It  would  be  well  to  note  that  all  the  mining  districts  of  this 
chapter  are  embraced  within  the  limits  of  the  Beaubien  and 
Miranda  (Maxwell)  grant. 


CHAPTER  XX. 

RED  RIVER  DISTRICT. 

This  district  lies  in  the  eastern  part  of  Taos  county,  near 
the  line  of  Colfax  county,  about  twelve  miles  northwest  of 
Elizabethtown.  The  country  up  and  down  Red  river  with 
many  of  the  tributary  gulches  was  prospected  in  1869,  about 
three  years  after  the  discovery  of  gold  at  Elizabethtown. 
Some  placer  gold  was  taken  from  the  stream  and  gulches; 
though  not  in  the  quantities  found  about  Baldy  mountain  at 
Elizabethtown. 

In  1879  the  Waterberry  Company  built  a  smelter  on  the 
property  now  known  as  the  Copper  King. 

On  account  of  a  deficiency  in  fluxing  materials,  and  the 
great  distance  from  a  railroad,  La  Veta,  Colorado,  being  the 
nearest  railway  point,  the  enterprise  proved  a  failure.  This 
smelter  was  never  operated  after  a  trial  run  or  two,  and 
burned  down  in  1889. 

Beginning  with  the  years  of  1893-4,  the  first  systematic 
prospecting  was  inaugurated.  It  was  during  the  year  1894 
when  the  present  townsite  of  Red  River  City  was  located  by 
the  Mallette  brothers. 

During  the  fall  of  1895  the  Golden  Treasure  and  Jay-hawk 
were  located. 

About  the  time  of  the  permanent  settlement  of  the  town, 
Anchor  or  Midnight  was  settled,  and  two  mills  at  that  place 
were  operated  for  a  while;  litigation  closed  the  mills  and 
they  are  at  present  idle. 

Red  River  is  a  beautiful  mountain  town  and  is  fast  gaining 
reputation  as  a  summer  resort. 

No  mining  camp  was  ever  favored  with  better  facilities  for 
wood  and  water. 

The  stream  of  Red  river  (Rio  Colorado)  is  an  ideal  one  for 
the  installation  of  electrical  power  for  the  purpose  of  oper- 
ating all  kinds  of  mills  and  mining  machinery.  The  time  in 
the  future  is  not  far  distant  when  the  "eternal  hills'"  will 


154  NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS. 

open  up  their  treasures  by  responding  to  the  magic  touch  of 
a  button.  The  millions  of  horse-power  now  going  to  waste 
here  annually,  is  ample  to  reduce  the  ores  of  the  district  and 
convert  the  rusty  metallic  sulphides  into  shining  gold. 

This  district  is  not  lacking  in  the  series  of  rocks,  such  as 
granites,  gneisses,  syenites,  schists  and  quartzites.  Some 
shales,  slates  and  limestone  are  found  flanking  the  older  for- 
mations; the  latter,  especially,  are  not  very  conspicuous.  The 
whole  district  is  checkered  with  intrusives  of  diorite  and 
other  eruptive  types  of  rocks;  the  surface  is  frequently  cap- 
ped with  andesite. 

Porphyry  dikes  carrying  iron  and  copper  are  numerous; 
the  influence  of  such  dikes  in  the  segregation  of  ores  is  quite 
marked  in  many  instances;  the  Jay-hawk  and  Copper  Dome 
furnish  good  examples  in  this  respect. 

Some  of  the  more  prominent  claims  and  prospects  in  the 
Red  River  district  are:  Black  Diamond  group,  Peerless 
group,  Homestake  group,  Copper  Dome,  Anaconda  group. 
Standard  group,  Laura  B.  and  Minnie  L.,  Last  Chance,  Fort 
Reno  and  Deadhead  group,  Yankee  Maid,  J.  O.  G.,  Dead- 
wood  group,  Ragged  Pants  Dick,  Golden  Treasure,  Paxton 
group,  Copper  Hill  group,  Hornet,  Rock  of  Ages,  Sure-thing 
group,  Exile  group,  Bueno,  Commodore  group  and  Wild 
Rose  group. 

The  Jay-hawk  mine  is  the  most  noted  property  in  the  dis- 
trict; H.  J.  Luce  is  manager.  This  mine  is  situated  about 
three  miles  above  Red  River  City  on  what  is  known  as  Black 
mountain.  The  property  consists  of  five  claims;  three  of 
which  are  patented.  Present  development  (January,  1904) 
consists  of  over  300  feet  of  tunnel  and  50  feet  of  shaft.  Five 
distinct  leads  have  been  pierced  by  the  tunnel;  one  of  which 
is  nearly  22  feet  wide,  another  10,  and  the  last  one  is  small, 
but  carries  the  best  values.  At  present  this  ore  is  hauled 
down  the  mountain,  about  five  miles,  where  it  is  concentrat- 
ed. The  capacity  of  the  concentrator  is  about  30  tons  daily. 
Two  Wilfley  tables,  a  sixty  horse-power  boiler,  a  fifty  horse- 
power Corliss  engine,  and  a  crusher  form  the  principal 
equipment.  In  order  to  avoid  the  long  haul  of  ore  to  the  mill, 
the  company  will  soon  have  a  new  mill  completed  which  is 
being  erected  at  the  mine. 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS.  155 

Beside  the  concentrating  plant  of  the  Jay-hawk  company, 
there  are  three  arrastras  being  operated  in  the  district  with 
fairly  good  success;  others  to  be  installed  soon. 

This  district  has  many  good  features;  the  only  thing  dis- 
paraging, is  the  long  distance  from  transportation. 

On  June  18,  1904,  John  Lacaniche  and  Louie  Marchino 
made  an  exceedingly  rick  strike  on  their  Independence  mine 
which  suddenly  revived  the  camp.  This  particular  property 
is  on  Bitter  creek,  about  six  miles  from  Red  river. 

Considerable  excitement  prevails  at  this  writing  and  the 
country  is  being  covered  with  locations. 

The  classification  of  the  ore  has  not  been  fully  determined; 
it  is  thought  to  be  petzite.  The  Angola  Boy  was  the  next 
and  adjoining  claim  to  the  Independence  that  was  staked;  it 
belongs  to  P.  C.  Stevens,  L.  Rogers  and  F.  L.  Stevens. 

Black  Copper  District. 

This  district,  properly  speaking  is  not  a  distinct  district, 
but  belongs  to  the  Red  River  district.  It  is  sometimes 
spoken  of  as  the  "head  of  the  river,"  having  reference  to  the 
head  or  source  of  the  Red  River. 

Some  very  rich  ore  was  taken  from  the  original  Black  Cop- 
per mines  a  few  years  ago;  extensive  development  was  done 
then  and  a  ten  stamp  mill  with  concentrating  machinery  was 
installed.  Gold  was  the  principal  metal  of  the  ore.  Litiga- 
tion and  other  matters  caused  the  property  to  close  down;  it 
has  now  been  idle  for  several  years. 

Theodore  Cannard  owns  several  promising  properties  here 
of  which  mention  was  made  under  the  Peerless  group  of  Red 
River. 

This  camp,  unfortunately,  is  very  inaccessible. 

Keystone  and  Midnight  Districts. 

This  region  lies  immediately  to  the  north  of  Red  River  dis- 
trict and  is  in  Taos  county.  The  general  character  of  the  ore 
and  formations  are  similar  to  those  at  Red  River.  Develop- 
ment has  not  been  very  extensive;  although  at  one  time  con- 
siderable activity  was  manifested  in  the  camp. 

The  only  work  of  importance  carried  on  at  this  writing  is 
by  the  Cashier  Gold  Mining  and  Milling  Company,  in  the  de- 
velopment of  the  Cashier  group  of  claims. 


156  NEW    MEXICO    MINES    AND    MINERALS. 

It  is  probable  this  property  will  be  a  producer  during  1904, 
since  present  developments  are  very  encouraging. 

La  Belle  District. 

Considerable  excitement  existed  in  this  district  about  the 
year  1895.  The  region  is  very  similar  in  most  respects  to  the 
general  country  in  the  Sangre  de  Cristo  range  of  mountains. 

Porphyritic  eruptives  and  intrusives  form  the  principal 
features  to  be  seen  on  the  surface;  the  veins  are  principally 
fissures. 

During  the  time  of  the  first  excitement  a  large  number  of 
claims  were  staked  out;  most  of  which,  however,  fell  back  to 
the  government  a  few  years  later. 

Of  the  old  locations,  the  Aztec  is  favorably  known,  which 
belongs  to  the  Aztec  Mining  and  Milling  Company,  it  has  a 
shaft  100  feet  deep  and  a  tunnel  176  feet  deep. 

Generally  speaking,  the  ores  of  the  La  Belle  district  are 
low  grade  and  very  refractory.  Transportation  is  badly 
needed. 

Rio  Hondo  (Twining)  District. 

The  Taos  range  of  mountains  in  New  Mexico  is  to  be  re- 
garded as  only  a  continuation  of  the  Sangre  de  Cristo  range 
which  lies  farther  to  the  north  in  Colorado. 

Colfax  and  Taos  counties  mutually  share  the  backbone  of 
this  elevated  ridge  as  their  common  boundary  line. 

The  rugged  formations  of  the  region  are  primarily  due  to 
volcanic  forces,  aided  by  finishing  touches  of  erosion,  effect- 
ually applied  in  later  geological  epochs.  Lying  high  on  the 
western  slope  of  the  range  whose  drainage  waters  at  this 
point  reach  the  Rio  Grande,  by  way  of  the  Rio  Hondo,  is  the 
Rio  Hondo  mining  district.  Mining  operations  have  been 
carried  on  in  this  district,  in  a  small  way,  for  a  great  many 
years. 

Much  work  in  placer  mining  was  formerly  conducted  by 
the  Mexicans  near  or  at  the  foot  of  the  mountains.  At 
Amizette  many  years  ago,  a  small  copper  smelter  was  erected 
which  proved  a  failure. 

It  was  not  however,  until  early  in  the  spring  of  1893,  that 
the  district  received  something  of  a  boom  by  the  discovery 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS.  157 

of  a  number  of  promising  mining  claims  in  the  vicinity  of 
the  old  camp  at  Amizette. 

The  writer  was  among  the  earliest  visitors  to  the  new 
fields,  and  had  an  opportunity  to  familiarize  himself  with 
the  district  to  a  considerable  degree;  having  remained  there 
during  the  months  of  May,  June  and  July. 

The  district  is  very  rugged;  the  main  axis  of  the  range  ex- 
tends north  and  south  and  has  a  gneissoid  and  schistose 
structure.  Intrusive  dikes  of  diorite  and  porphyrite  cut 
the  schist  formation  at  intervals;  some  of  which  are  iron 
bearing  and  frequently  carry  a  good  grade  of  hematite. 

The  ore  lies  at  the  porphyry  contact  and  also  in  and 
through  the  schist;  the  latter  formation  being  interspersed 
with  seams  and  veins  of  quartz.  The  field  term  for  these 
schists  may  be  termed  hydro-mica  and  are  perhaps  Algon- 
kian  in  age.  The  igneous  action  of  these  intrusives  on  the 
schists  and  shales  accompanied  by  hot  waters,  is  the  primary 
cause  of  inducing  mineralization. 

The  Fraser  mine  is  by  far  the  most  important  in  the  dis- 
trict. There  are  several  claims  in  this  property,  some  of 
which  have  been  extensively  developed.  The  property  lies 
well  up  toward  the  top  of  Eraser  mountain;  a  tram  of  about 
half  a  mile  in  length  conveys  the  ore  to  the  mill. 

A  one  hundred  ton  concentrating  plant  and  smelter  has 
been  erected  by  the  Fraser  Mountain  Copper  Company  and 
some  trial  runs  made.  Since  the  ore  is  of  a  very  low  grade, 
averaging  less  than  §5.00  per  ton  in  copper,  gold  and  silver, 
the  enterprise  was  not  a  success.  The  writer  was  on  the 
ground  about  the  time  the  first  run  was  made;  from  observa- 
tions made  during  that  visit,  it  was  not  surprising  to  learn, 
shortly  afterward,  that  the  concern  had  gone  into  the  hands 
of  a  receiver. 

The  mines  should  not  be  held  responsible  for  this  misfor- 
tune: the  blame  should  be  attributed  solely  to  incompetent 
management. 

Bull-of-the-Woods  group  lying  partly  in  the  Red  River  dis- 
trict, is  rather  a  favorable  looking  property;  it  lies  somewhat 
across  the  divide  east  of  the  Fraser  mountain.  Development 
to  the  extent  of  a  500-foot  tunnel  and  a  65-foot  shaft  has  been 
done  by  the  owners,  James  Lynch  and  associates  of  Eliza- 


158  NEW    MEXICO    MINES  AND    MINERALS. 

bethtown.  This  property  is  a  copper  proposition;  the  ore  is 
found  in  a  schistose  rock  carrying  some  quartz.  On  account 
of  its  inaccessibility  it  has  been  lying  idle.  A  very  extensive 
low  grade  cyaniding  proposition  is  found  in  South  Fork 
canyon  and  known  as  the  South  Fork  group;  it  is  being  de- 
veloped by  the  San  Cristobal  Copper  Co.,  of  New  York. 

The  King  Solomon  group,  Berry  Extension  and  Copper 
King  group,  including  some  free  gold  claims  lying  in  Long's 
canyon,  embrace  the  remainder  of  the  principal  lodes;  very 
little  development  work  has  been  done  on  these  properties. 

Near  the  top  of  the  divide  in  going  over  the  trail  from 
Twining  to  Red  River,  above  the  Fraser  mill,  is  found  some 
placer  ground  which  was  worked  in  the  fall  of  1893  by  hy- 
draulicing,  but  the  enterprise  was  only  partially  successful; 
the  water  supply  being  inadequate  on  account  of  the  position 
at  the  top  of  the  range.  Nothing  since  has  been  done  at  these 
diggings,  only  in  a  small  way  by  panning. 

Cieneguilla  (Glen-Woody)  District. 

Nowhere  in  the  southwest  is  such  an  enormous  body  of 
quartz  and  quartzite  to  be  seen  as  at  the  Glen-Woody  camp 
in  the  Cieneguilla  mining  district. 

This  camp  was  established  in  the  summer  of  1902,  by 
W.  M.  Woody,  who  represents  the  Glen-Woody  Mining  and 
Milling  Company. 

Mr.  Woody,  before  going  to  Alaska  at  the  time  of  the  Klon- 
dike gold  discovery,  operated  placer  mines  on  the  Rio 
Grande,  one  half  mile  below  the  present  camp;  this  was  the 
time  when  his  attention  was  first  drawn  to  the  immense 
body  of  quartzite. 

These  placers  were  in  the  gravel  bed  of  the  river;  but  were 
not  successful  financially,  owing  to  interference  of  mal  pais 
boulders  lying  in  the  bed  of  the  stream.  It  was  at  this  time 
that  attention  was  attracted  by  the  enormous  quartz  deposits 
which  were  exposed  along  the  stream. 

Glen- Woody  camp  is  where  latitude  36°  20'  North,  crosses 
the  Rio  Grande,  in  Taos  county.  The  townsite  is  on  the 
west  side  of  the  river,  while  the  mill  and  ore  body  is  on  the 
opposite  or  east  side. 

The  bridge  at  this  point  was  built  on  some  of  the  old  piers 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS.  159 

of  a  government  bridge  which  was  burned  by  the  Apache 
Indians  during  their  hostilities  in  the  latter  seventies;  the 
bridge  was  never  rebuilt  by  the  government. 

An  experimental  plant  of  50  tons  capacity,  consisting  of  a 
a  5-foot  Huntington  mill,  with  cyanide  tanks  has  recently 
been  completed. 

The  machinery  is  run  by  water  power;  the  water  being 
conducted  by  a  flume  out  of  the  river  about  one  mile  above 
the  mill.  The  power  is  developed  by  a  160  H.  P.  turbine 
wheel.  This  power  is  ample  to  run  several  more  Hunting- 
ton's  should  the  experimental  runs  be  a  success. 

The  Glen-Woody  ore  may,  generally  speaking,  be  classed 
as  quartzite;  although  stringers  and  veins  of  quartz  run 
through  the  deposit  at  numerous  places.  These  quartz  veins 
and  stringers  sometimes  attain  a  width  of  several  feet.  The 
width  of  the  main  lode  itself  is  approximately  600  feet;  and 
rises  to  an  average  height  above  the  river  of  300  feet.  The 
Company  has  three  full  claims,  making  4,500  feet  along  the 
lode.  Approximately,  there  are  50,000,000  tons  of  ore  above 
the  river  which  may  be  considered  in  sight.  The  length  of 
this  enormous  lode  cannot  well  be  ascertained,  since  it 
crosses  the  river  about  half  a  mile  below  the  bridge  where  it 
is  covered  by  the  mesa  lava,  and  in  following  up  stream  the 
river  deflects  to  the  left  gradually  leaving  the  lode  more  than 
a  thousand  feet  at  the  easterly  end  of  the  Glen-Woody  prop- 
erty. 

It  is  quite  probable  that  the  lode  is  four  miles  long;  the 
northeasterly  end  disappearing  under  detritus  at  the  top  of 
the  hill. 

From  a  survey  made  by  the  wTriter  of  the  property  in  No- 
vember, 1903,  the  strike  of  the  lode  was  found  to  be  N.  60° 
22'  E.  and  the  dip  about  ^>  to  the  southeast. 

A  much  sheared  quartzite  lies  on  the  foot  wall  next  to  the 
river,  and  a  similar  quartzite  is  on  the  hanging  wall  though  of 
a  lighter  color.  The  exact  age  of  this  formation  has  not  been 
determined;  though  it  probably  is  Cambrian. 

The  general  appearance  of  the  main  lode  is  of  a  reddish 
tint;  although  some  of  the  best  grade  of  ore  is  a  granular 
white  quartz.  The  only  question  concerning  this  property 
as  a  merited  mining  proposition,  so  far  as  the  writer  is  able 


NK\V    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS.  161 

to  judge,  lies  in  the  value  of  the  ore,  which  is  claimed  by  the 
proprietors  to  average  $2.50  per  ton  in  gold.  Should  this  ore 
only  average  $1.50  per  ton,  there  can  be  no  reason  why  the 
enterprise  should  not  pay  a  handsome  profit;  since  it  is  an 
ideal  cyaniding  proposition  and  every  condition  is  favorable, 
such  as  cheap  labor  and  power,  water,  climate  and  transpor- 
tation. 

Copper  Mountain    District. 

Lying  a  few  miles  to  the  east  from  Glen- Woody  camp  is  the 
Copper  Hill  district,  wThich  is  practically  the  Picuris  region. 
This  district  has  been  recognized  for  a  number  of  years  by 
its  characteristic  outcroppings  of  strong  leads,  though  little 
development  has  ever  been  done;  the  principal  exception  be- 
ing the  work  accomplished  by  the  Copper  Hill  Mining  Com- 
pany. This  company  did  its  development  in  1900;  having  run 
a  600-foot  tunnel  and  sunk  a  main  shaft  to  a  depth  of  180  feet. 

A  hundred- ton  concentrating  plant  was  erected  at  this 
time,  but  unfortunately  burned  after  it  first  started.  This 
circumstance  forced  the  company  into  the  hands  of  a  re- 
ceiver and  the  property  was  recently  sold  to  satisfy  certain 
judgments. 

Within  the  past  two  years  the  Green  Mountain  Copper 
Company,  operating  at  Green  mountain,  has  done  some  devel- 
opment. A  tunnel  of  310  feet  has  been  driven  into  the 
mountain  to  cut  the  main  vein  at  a  considerable  depth  below 
the  surface.  The  ore  is  of  silicious  character  carrying  cop- 
per, gold  and  silver  in  sufficient  quantities  to  pay  if  the  prop- 
erty is  intelligently  handled.  The  vein  is  a  contact  between 
quartzite  and  mica-schist.  The  general  make-up  of  the  dis- 
trict is  similar  in  many  respects  to  the  Glen« Woody  camp— 
quartzites  and  mica-schists  being  the  parallel  features. 

The  Ural  group  is  fairly  well  developed,  as  also,  the  Wilson 
group;  the  chance  of  each  of  these  properties  becoming  pro- 
producers  is  good. 


CHAPTER  XXI. 


BROMIDE   DISTRICT,   No.  2. 

This  mining  district  is  situated  in  Rio  Arriba  county,  about 
fourteen  miles  west  from  Tres  Piedras,  a  small  village 
on  the  Denver  &  Rio  Grande  Railroad. 

The  basal  formation  is  granite;  lying  next  to  this  core  are 
the  gneisses  and  heavy  Algonkian  schists.  Flanking  the 
older  formations  are  the  sedimentary  series  all  of  which  are 
more  or  less  shattered  and  covered  by  eruptives  of  trachory te 
(Hayden). 

The  whole  country  about  this  point,  from  the  northeast 
around  to  the  southeast  is  covered  with  basalt  (malpais,)  to 
the  Rio  Grande;  and  even  beyond  that  stream  the  flow  ex- 
tends for  several  miles.  This  great  lava  flow  dammed  the 
river  for  a  distance  of  sixty  miles;  the  evidence  of  this  state- 
ment is  verified  from  the  nature  of  the  great  gorge  which  is 
over  1,000  feet  deep  and  less  than  half  a  mile  wide. 

Tusas  Peak  is  about  9,500  feet  in  elevation  and  is  the  high- 
est point  in  the  camp;  the  summit  of  which  is  composed  of 
the  older  indurated  rocks  which  have  been  exposed  to 
erosive  agencies  for  countless  centuries. 

An  axial  ridge  from  this  peak  runs  in  a  flat  V-shape;  the 
vertex  of  the  letter  very  nearly  corresponds  with  Tusas 
Peak;  and  the  sides  of  the  V  take  the  directions  of  the  axial 
ridge,  running^northwest  and  northeast,  respectively. 

The  principal  mines  of  the  district  lie  on  either  side  and 
near  to  the  left  branch  of  this  V-shaped  ridge. 

The  whole  country  is  considerably  faulted  and  the  district 
is  noted  for  its  vast  bodies  of  schist.  Occasionally,  lenticular 
bodies  of  quartz  are  also  encountered.  Sheared  quartzite  in 
juxtaposition  with  the  schistose  formations  and  gneissoid 
granites  woulu  indicate  tremendous  slipping  pressure,  wrhich 
was  certainly  accompanied  by  great  [heat,  and  in  the 
presence  of  hot  waters,  the  metallic  sulphide  ores  were 
segregated  along  the  most  favored  zones  of  fracture  and 


NEW    MEXICO   MINES    AND   MINERALS.  163 

porosity.  All  of  the  ores,  generally  speaking,  are  sulphides; 
copper,  silver,  lead  and  pyrites  of  iron  carrying  gold.  Cop- 
per, associated  with  gold,  will  no  doubt  be  the  principal 
inetal  found  in  the  deeper  levels. 

The  first  lode  discovered  and  located  in  this  district  was 
the  "Bromide,"  from  which  the  district  took  its  name. 

The  property  was  located  in  July,  1881,  by  D.  M.  Field  and 
J.  M.  Bonnett.  The  ore  is  more  of  a  brittle  silver  (stephanite) 
rather  than  the  bromide  (bromyrite). 

The  property  has  been  little  more  than  merely  prospected; 
about  $18,000  has  been  taken  from  the  mine,  some  of  the  ore 
being  exceedingly  rich.  The  ore  is  purely  silver,  no  gold  nor 
copper  being  present. 

Work  on  the  Dillon  Developing  Tunnel  has  been  recently 
started  at  the  southeast  corner  of  the  Bromide  claim,  which 
will  pass  under  the  old  workings  of  this  mine  at  increased 
depth.  This  tunnel  will  then  be  slightly  deflected  and  driven 
under  the  Pay  Roll  mine,  giving  760  feet  in  depth  on  that 
property,  and  draining  a  number  of  other  properties  beside 
the  Bromide  and  Pay  Roll.  The  length  of  this  tunnel  will  be 
6,300  feet,  and  will  cut  at  right  angles  all  the  heavy  schist 
formations.  The  completion  of  this  tunnel  would  fairly  dem- 
onstrate the  value  of  the  schist  belt  in  that  section  of  the 
camp. 

Among  the  more  prominent  properties  of  the  camp  is  the 
Admiral  group,  discovered  by  Thomas  Smith,  a  mining  en- 
gineer, about  1902,  which  consists  of  five  claims;  the  three 
claims — Dewey,  Sampson  and  Schley  -— lie  on  the  north  side 
of  the  axial  ridge,  while  the  Wedge  and  Blue  Bell  lie  on  the 
south  of  the  ridge.  The  top  of  the  axial  ridge  virtually  forms 
the  boundary  line  between  the  two  latter  claims  and  the 
three  former  ones. 

An  immense  dike  of  trachoryte  (Hay den)  traverses  these 
claims  and  extends  six  or  seven  miles;  the  walls  of  the  dike 
are  gneissoid  in  character,  and  are  from  800  to  1,500  feet 
apart. 

Contact  veins  exist  along  either  side  of  this  eruptive  having 
the  gneiss  for  a  wall  of  each  vein,  with  a  schist  capping. 

The  general  character  of  the  formation  of  most  of  the 
claims  in  the  district  is  similar  to  that  of  the  Admiral  group. 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS.  165 

Some  splendid  ore,  copper  carbonates  and  sulphides  carry- 
ing gold  and  silver,  has  been  taken  out  of  the  Tampa  quite 
recently;  the  indications  are  that  the  ore  body  is  permanent. 
This  property  belongs  to  the  Tusas  Peak  Gold  and  Copper 
Mining  Company.  Other  properties,  such  as  the  Whale, 
Mayflower  group,  16  to  1,  Sardine,  War  Eagle,  Mexican  King 
Co.,  Merrimac  group,  Midnight,  The  Wayne- Arriba  Mining 
Company,  Last  Dollar,  Keystone  Co.,  Pontiac  Mining  Co., 
Walker,  Iron  Clad,  Gold  Pan  Co.,  Butterfly,  Red  Fissure, 
Farragut,  Agnes,  Royal  Purple,  Independence,  Strawberry, 
Joe  D.,  Big  Sandy,  etc.,  deserve  mention.  It  is  learned  that 
several  good  prospects  have  been  opened  up  on  Cow  creek 
which  lie  nearer  the  railroad  by  three  or  four  miles.  The 
Bromide  district  is  well  watered  and  heavily  timbered. 
Whilst  the  district  has  never  been  a  heavy  producer,  this 
should  not  militate  against  the  camp;  since  the  title  had  been 
under  a  land  grant  cloud  until  1900,  when  the  United  States 
Supreme  Court  declared  the  district  public  domain.  Since 
that  time  much  progress  has  been  made;  development  is  par- 
taking of  a  substantial  nature. 

Headstone   (Hopewell)   District. 

Originally  the  Headstone  district  embraced  that  of  the 
Bromide.  The  Bromide  district  was  organized  and  estab- 
lished by  cutting  off  and  comprising  a  certain  portion  of  the 
original  Headstone  district. 

During  the  summer  of  1881,  after  the  rich  strike  made  in 
the  Bromide,  a  wragon  road  was  built  into  Hopewell  (then 
Good  Hope),  on  account  of  rich  placer  discoveries  at  Eureka 
gulch  about  a  mile  out  from  Hopewell. 

It  is  said  that  a  merchant  by  the  name  of  Clarence  C.  Hood 
took  in  about  $175,000  of  placer  gold  which  came  from  that 
gulch  during  the  first  three  years  he  was  there.  The  largest 
nugget  found  at  that  time  was  valued  at  $34.00.  Mr.  J.  P. 
Gill  has  just  completed  (December,  1903)  a  very  fine  hydrau- 
lic plant  at  the  Lower  Flat  placers,  west  of  Hopewell,  when 
he  expects  to  turn  on  the  water,  early  in  the  spring,  and  be- 
gin active  work  at  that  time.  These  grounds  are  gulch  gra- 
vels and  are  said  to  be  very  rich. 

The  formations  here  are  substantially  the  same  as  those  at 


166  NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS. 

Bromide.  Granite,  gneiss,  schists,  and  porphyry 'prevail;  the 
ore  being  found  on  the  contact  between  the  granites  or 
schists,  or  wholly  in  the  schists  by  penetrating  quartz  veins 
and  stringers.  The  ores  in  this  camp  are  principally  sul- 
phides and  carry  gold. 

The  largest  nugget  of  gold  ever  taken  from  any  of  the 
Hopewell  lode  properties  came  from  the  Croesus,  at  a  depth 
of  forty  feet  and  was  worth  about  $15.00.  This  would  seem 
that  the  origin  of  the  Eureka  and  Lower  Flat  placers  is  from 
the  adjacent  lodes.  The  extent  of  this  placer  area  is  not 
considered  great. 

The  lode  claim  known  as  Mineral  Point,  and  worked  un- 
der the  management  of  E.  C.  Sterling  is  rather  extensively 
developed;  having  something  like  1,500  feet  of  work. 

The  ore  is  apparently  low  grade  and  refractory  and  would 
average  perhaps,  $9.00  per  ton.  A  little  copper  and  silver  is 
also  found  in  the  ore. 

Entensive  work  is  now  going  on  in  the  "Jaw  Bone;'* 
diamond  drills  have  been  used  in  the  prospecting.  Lately 
the  drills  have  been  laid  aside  and  work  in  extending  a  tunnel 
and  sinking  a  shaft  is  being  prosecuted;  this  would  indicate 
that  the  diamond  drill  had  pierced  some  good  ore. 

Some  of  the  claims  of  this  district  are  the  Good  Hope 
group,  Crescent,  Duck  group,  Golden  Age,  Atlantic  Mining 
Co.,  Silent  Friend  group,  Hornet  group,  Iron  Mountain, 
Columbia  group,  10  Better  group,  Buckborn,  Hidden  Treas- 
ure group,  Emerald  group,  and  others. 

The  same  conditions  prevail  in  this  camp  as  those  found  in 
the  Bromide;  active  work  on  a  business  mining  basis  is  now 
being  inaugurated,  and  good  results  are  expected  in  the  near 
future. 

Copper  Canyon  District. 

This  cannot  with  propriety  be  called  a  mining  district, 
since  practically  no  prospecting  or  development  has  been 
done.  It  lies  near  Abiquiu,  in  Rio  Arriba  county. 

The  principal  location  is  the  "Lily  Belle"  owned  by  J.  E. 
Irvine.  The  work  consists  of  a  60-foot  tunnel.  Copper 
glance  is  the  character  of  the  ore  and  it  occurs  in  a  white 
sandstone. 


XH\V    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS.  167 

Ojo  Caliente   District. 

This  district  received  its  name  from  the  famous  hot  springs 
in  that  locality.  But  little  mining  has  been  carried  on  in  this 
region.  The  most  important  property  in  the  district  is  the 
mica  mine,  known  as  the  Mica  Age,  belonging  to  Hon.  Anto- 
nio Joseph  and  mentioned  under  the  chapter  on  mica.  The 
Antonio  Joseph  group  of  gold  and  silver  mines  lying  a  short 
distance  west  of  the  hot  springs  is  the  best  developed  in  the 
district.  It  is  thought  by  some  that  this  property  was 
worked  by  the  Spaniards,  as  there  seems  to  be  some  evidence 
in  one  place  of  ancient  working.  The  Chicago  and  Big  Mis- 
souri are  the  only  others  deserving  mention  at  this  writing. 

The  region  has  been  developed  in  the  throes  of  volcanic 
action  and  is  much  torn  and  shattered,  and  the  fires  of  its 
more  youthful  days  have  not  yet  cooled,  as  evidenced  by  the 
existing  hot  springs. 


CHAPTER   XXII. 


WHITE  MOUNTAIN   DISTRICT. 

In  the  early  days,  prior  to  1870,  the  whole  of  the  country 
stretching  from  the  White  mountains  to  the  Jicarilla  was 
known  as  the  Sierra  Blanca  region. 

Many  old  ruins  were  noticed  at  the  time  of  the  first  pros- 
pecting, of  which  but  little  or  nothing  is  known  of  the  former 
inhabitants.  Traditions  among  the  Indians  and  Mexicans 
have  it  that  those  ancient  people  worked  rich  mines  of  gold 
and  silver  somewhere  in  the  Sierra  Blanca,  the  localities  of 
which  are  at  the  present  time  unknown. 

Prospecting  for  placer  gold  was  carried  on  in  a  desultory 
manner  by  Mexicans  in  this  region,  as  early  as  1860. 

Among  the  oldest  claims  in  the  White  mountain  region  is 
the  Sierra  Blanca  lode;  this  was  located  about  the  year  1868. 
The  vein  is  encased  in  what  appears  to  be  a  kaolinzed  augite- 
andesite;  and  seems  to  have  a  width  of  nearly  thirty  feet. 
Gold  is  the  principal  metallic  value  of  the  district;  no  active 
mining  is  being  conducted  at  present. 

Nogal   District. 

Nogal  district  lies  in  Lincoln  county  and  the  country  is 
rendered  conspicuous  by  the  celebrated  Nogal  peak  which 
rises  to  the  magnificent  height  of  9,983  feet  above  the  sea. 

The  first  authentic  account  of  the  discovery  of  gold  was  in 
Dry  gulch  which  heads  above  the  American  and  Helen  Rae 
mines;  this  was  about  the  year  1865.  Billy  Gil]  is  credited 
with  being  the  discoverer  of  the  first  quartz  lode,  called  the 
American  mine;  this  was  in  1868.  Operations  on  this  lode 
were  conducted  from  Ft.  Stanton,  presumably  by  soldiers. 

A  number  of  the  early  prospectors,  at  the  hands  of  the 
Apache  Indians,  laid  down  their  lives  in  this  region  in  pur- 
suit of  the  seductive  yellow7  metal;  two  of  the  unfortunates 
were  buried  where  they  fell,  near  their  prospect  pits. 

No  systematic  prospecting  was  done  in  the  Nogal  district, 


NEW    MEXICO   MINES  AND   MINERALS.  169 

until  the  year  1HK):  the  district  at  that  time  formed  a  portion 
of  the  Mescalero  Indian  reservation,  which  was,  in  part, 
thrown  open  in  May,  1882.  The  following  October  the  Rock- 
ford  mine  was  opened  and  some  very  rich  ore,  running  s^r- 
per  ton,  was  encountered. 

M.  M.  Gaylord  and  Company  in  1883  erected  the  Rock- 
ford  mill;  cleaning  up  $8,000  in  a  sixty-day  run.  Litigation 
followed  arid  the  property  has  remained  practically  inoper- 
ative ever  since.  The  Rockford  and  two  other  claims,  known 
as  the  Clipper  and  Cashier,  constitute  the  Rockford  group. 

Milling  of  ore  from  the  American  mine  started  in  October, 
1884,  by  Gill,  in  connection  with  Joseph  Fletcher  who  owned 
a  mill. 

The  mill  was  equipped  with  Cornish  rolls,  and  in  eleven 
months  time  $23,000  was  produced  by  only  two  miners  work- 
ing in  the  mine. 

In  1885  Godfrey  Hunter  purchased  the  property  for  $11,- 
000:  a  little  later  disposing  of  two-thirds  his  interest  for  $25,- 
000.  New  York  parties  afterward  acquired  the  property,  but 
never  were  able  to  make  the  proposition  pay.  The  produc- 
tion of  the  mine,  all  told,  is  estimated  at  $85,000,  to  January 
1904. 

X<>  claims  in  the  Nogal  district  are  better  known  than  the 
Helen  Rae  and  Cross-cut;  located  by  three  "tenderfeet,"  R. 
D.  and  Harry  George  and  Chas.  Epps,  in  1*80.  Much  of  the 
ore  from  these  twro  claims  was  phenomenally  rich  which  was 
taken  out  by  surface  trenching  along  the  lode  and  by  shallow 
shafts.  After  taking  out  considerable  gold  in  18*0,  the  three 
partners,  the  following  year,  from  some  cause  failed  to  do 
their  assessment,  and  two  prospectors  by  the  name  of  Storms 
and  Murphy  in  1**2  jumped  the  property.  A  little  later 
these  two  men  sold  out  to  John  Rae,  from  which  name  the 
property  is  now  known.  Rae  pounded  out  with  mortar  and 
pestle  from  $100  to  $300  per  day  from  the  Cross-cut;  and  in 
one  instance  one  single  pan  of  the  ore  yielded  $1,100  in  gold. 
A  shaft  sunk  on  the  Helen  Rae  twenty -live  feet  deep  gave  $3,- 
300;  $10,000  was  mortared  and  panned  out,  and  125  tons 
milled  |4,804,  making  a  total  of  $14,804  taken  out  by  Rae  in 
less  than  one  year.  The  ores  turned  base  at  no  great  depth; 
this  consequence  induced  Rae  to  sell  the  property,  which  he 


170  NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS. 

did  to  Rolla  Wells  for  $15,000.  Wells  in  turn  passed  the 
mines  over  to  M.  D.  Gaylord  in  1901,  who  is  connected  with 
the  American  Gold  Mining  Company,  and  who  now  in  1904, 
operates  the  property.  The  Ibex  is  also  a  property  with 
much  to  commend  it. 

The  strike  of  the  veins  in  this  part  of  the  district  is  nearly 
north  and  south  and  the  dip  is  about  80°  toward  the  west. 
Formation  is  andesite,  syenite  and  birds-eye  porphyry,  with 
veins  cutting  through;  kaolinization  has  advanced  to  a  con- 
siderable degree. 

Nogal  village,  which  owes  its  birth  to  the  mining  in  the 
early  80's  in  that  region,  is  located  at  the  junction  of  Dry 
gulch  and  Nogal  canyon,  north  of  the  Helen  Rae  and  Amer- 
ican mines. 

Bonito  (Parsons)  District. 

Over  the  divide  from  Nogal  toward  the  south,  a  few  miles, 
the  Bonito  mining  district  is  situated,  and  lies  in  Lincoln 
county. 

Near  the  divide  which  separates  the  two  districts,  old 
workings,  presumably  of  Spanish  origin,  are  to  be  seen; 
turquoise  appears  to  have  been  the  object  of  their  efforts. 
Kaolinization  has  taken  place  and  the  formation  is  almost  a 
counterpart  of  those  at  the  Cerrillos  and  Burro  mountain 
turquoise  mines;  some  fairly  good  turquoise  fragments  were 
picked  up. 

The  prevailing  types  of  rocks  in  this  district  are  much  the 
same  as  on  the  Nogal  side  of  the  mountains;  birds-eye  por- 
phyry and  syenite  are  the  chief  classes. 

The  most  noted  mine  in  the  Bonito  district  is  the  old  Par- 
sons' (now  Hopeful)  mine.  This  property  at  one  time  had  a 
considerable  production.  The  postoffice  of  Parsons  is  about 
one  mile  below  the  mine. 

The  main  lodes  have  a  general  north  and  south  strike; 
while  the  subsidiary  and  more  recent  lodes  cut  through  the 
older  system  nearly  at  right  angles.  Gold  predominates  in 
the  primary  lodes,  while  lead-silver  is  the  distinguishing 
characteristic  of  the  later  or  cross  lodes.  On  the  whole,  the 
various  classes  of  ore  are  very  low  grade. 

A  few  of  the  locations  are  the  Etta,  Bismarck,  No.  1  and 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS.  171 

No  2,  Lady  Francis,  Jennie  Lind,  Buckshot,  George  Washing- 
ton, Martha  Washington  and  the  Crow  and  Raven  gruops. 
Among  the  early  prospectors  and  pioneers  of  Bonito  dis- 
trict are  C.  C.  Bourne,  R.  C.  Parsons,  Col.  G.  W.  Prichard, 
Ed.  Beard  and  others,  who  came  into  the  region  in  1881. 


Fig.  30 -SCENE  ON  RIO  BONITO.    Photographed  by  F.  A.  Jones,  19O4. 

The  old  Bonito  camp  or  postoffice  is  now  practically 
abandoned,  only  two  persons  linger  in  that  once  lively  little 
mountain  village. 

Eagle  Creek  and  Rio  Ruidoso  Districts. 

Southeast  of  Bonito  a  few  miles,  and  a  little  west  of  south 
from  Fort  Stanton  are  these  isolated  districts;  little  or  no 


172  NEW    MEXICO   MINES  AND   MINERALS. 

production  has  ever  been  credited  them.  This  region  lies  in 
Lincoln  county,  and  was  first  prospected  in  1885  by  John  A. 
Holder,  John  C.  High  tower,  Capt.  Brazell,  Charles  Berg  and 
Sam  Dougherty.  Porphyry  and  granite  are  the  prevailing 
types  of  rocks  at  the  center  of  the  districts,  flanked  by  lime- 
stone toward  the  outer  edges.  Copper  and  silver  ores  ap- 
pear to  predominate;  some  gold  and  lead  ores  are  encount- 
ered occasionally. 

The  veins  are  principally  contact  fissures  and  have  a  gen- 
eral north  and  south  trend. 

Principal  among  the  prospects  are  the  Comanche,  Chance, 
Return,  Virginia  and  Modoc. 

White  Oaks  District. 

Of  New  Mexican  mining  camps  none,  perhaps,  is  better 
known  than  White  Oaks. 

It  seems  that  the  Mexicans  had  washed  gold  in  a  small  way 
in  the  lower  part  of  Baxter  gulch,  as  at  Jicarilla,  for  a  num- 
ber of  years  prior  to  the  rich  discoveries  which  made  the 
camp  famous. 

Not  until  the  fall  of  1879  was  the  news  heralded  abroad 
that  the  discovery  of  fabulously  rich  gold  ore  had  been  made 
on  Baxter  mountain. 

A  number  of  prospectors  had  been  prospecting  the  imme- 
diate vicinity  for  placer  gold,  among  them  were  George  Wil- 
son and  his  partner  Old  Jack  Winters,  and  George  Baxter. 
While  the  party  were  eating  dinner,  Wilson  took  his  lunch  in 
his  hand  and  strolled  up  the  side  of  Baxter  mountain,  where 
he  climbed  on  top  of  a  large  "blow-out"'  and  with  his  pick 
chipped  off  a  piece  of  the  rock,  and  on  examination  was  much 
surprised  to  find  that  it  contained  gold.  He  immediately  re- 
ported his  find  to  those  below  and  staked  out  the  North  Home- 
stake,  which  was  the  first  lode  location  made  in  the  camp. 
On  this  same  afternoon  Wilson  relinquished  his  rights  in  the 
property  to  his  partner,  Jack  Winters,  for  $40,  a  pony  and  a 
bottle  of  whisky.  Not  a  great  while  after  this  deal,  the  dis- 
coverer of  the  lode  mines  of  White  Oaks  disappeared  and 
was  never  heard  of  again. 

Winters  who  became  the  sole  owner  of  the  Homestake 
shortly  afterward  died,  leaving  the  property  to  his  heirs, 


NEW    MEXICO    MIXES   AND    MINERALS.  173 

who  sold  their  interests  to  James  M.  Seigfurst  for  $50,000. 
This  gentleman,  during  the  first  year  took  out  enough  gold 
to  pay  for  the  mine,  the  building  of  a  mill  and  had  a  surplus 
of  $10,000.  It  is  said  that  $35,000  was  taken  out  in  two  days; 
this  particularly  rich  strike  was  not  made  until  the  spring  of 
1880.  The  mine  has  produced  $400,000.  The  town  of  White 
Oaks  was  surveyed  in  May  of  that  year;  Las  Vegas  being  the 
nearest  railroad  market  point.  Soon  after  this  first  strike 
the  South  Homestake,  Little  Mack,  Old  Abe,  Comstock,  Rip 
Van  Winkle  and  other  properties  were  located,  which  since 
became  producers  of  more  or  less  importance. 

No  mine  in  White  Oaks  district  is  more  intimately  con- 
nected with,  or  interwoven  in  the  fabric  of  the  history  of  the 
camp,  than  that  of  the  Old  Abe. 

This  mine  has  been  the  barometer  of  life  and  trade  of  White 
Oaks,  from  its  earliest  inception  as  a  producer.  The  Old  Abe 
mine  was  discovered  in  the  winter  of  1879-80;  the  true  vein 
was  not  found  until  November,  1890,  when  pay  ore,  in  large 
quantities,  was  uncovered.  The  first  thirty-five  feet  in  depth 
proved  the  value  of  the  ore  to  average  $30.50  per  ton.  A 
twenty- stamp  mill  was  erected  which  began  operating  in 
April,  1893;  about  five  years  later  cyanide  was  added  to  treat 
the  tailings  and  a  canvas  floor  concentrator  has  recently  been 
installed. 

John  Y.  Hewitt,  one  of  the  first  owners,  has  been  identified 
with  the  Old  Abe  mine  through  all  its  vicissitudes  down  to 
the  present  writing. 

The  Old  Abe  vein  is  a  true  fissure  varying  in  width  from  3 
inches  to  16  inches:  but  attaining  the  extreme  width  of  22 
feet  in  the  chamber  known  as  the  "fish  pond,"  which  lay  be- 
tween the  7th  and  8th  levels.  The  ore  is  now  principally  a 
sulphide;  although  near  the  surface  it  was  mainly  free  mill- 
ing. 

A  total  depth  of  1,375  feet  is  reached,  which  is  the  deepest 
mine  in  New  Mexico.  Practically  no  water  has  been  en- 
countered and  it  said  to  be  the  deepest  dry  mine  in  the 
world.  The  total  output  to  January  1,  1904,  is  $875,000  in 
gold;  but  little  more  than  a  trace  of  silver  is  present  in  the 
ore.  Virgin  gold  in  gypsum  is  one  of  the  remarkable  occur- 
rences in  the  Old  Abe. 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS.  175 

The  Little  Mack  has  turned  out  some  of  the  richest  ore  in 
the  camp;  at  present  the  property  is  tied  up  in  litigation. 
This  property  has  produced  $50,000. 

The  Lady  Godiva  was  located  in  1383  by  B.  H.  Dye.  Some 
beautiful  specimens  of  wire  gold  have  been  taken  out  and  the 
mine  has  had  a  considerable  production. 

The  Boston  Boy  is  another  property  of  much  merit  and 
and  was  located  in  1893. 

Next  to  the  Old  Abe  in  production  stands  the  South  Home- 
stake,  which  is  credited  with  §600,000. 

In  the  Compromise,  most  beautiful  specimens  of  nugget 
and  wire  gold  have  been  found;  the  property  is  idle  due  to 
litigation. 

The  Rita,  Henry  Clay,  Little  Homestake,  Comstock,  Rip 
Van  Winkle,  Bristol,  Thunderer  and  Little  Nell,  possess 
many  qualities  which  go  toward  making  up  a  mine  when 
properly  developed.  The  total  production  of  White  Oaks 
camp  up  to  January  1,  1904,  is  $2,860,000. 

There  are  five  gold  mills  in  the  White  Oaks  district,  one  of 
these,  belonging  to  the  North  Homestake,  is  composed  of 
two  5-foot  Huntington's;  the  others  aggregate  50  stamps. 

The  following  is  a  geological  section,  as  sketched  by  the 
writer  on  February  6,  1904,  from  the  shale  contact  near  the 
Old  Abe  mine  to  the  top  of  Baxter  mountain. 

Successive  lava  flows  to  the  west  of  the  camp  are  observed, 
which  would  show  that  much  igneous  activity  had  at  certain 
intervals,  visited  the  region.  The  older  or  primary  erup- 
tions must  have  genetically  influenced  and  made  possible  the 
mineralization  which  exists  in  particular  and  favored  zones. 

Of  the  White  Oaks  range,  Baxter  mountain  seems  to  em- 
brace the  gold  bearing  area;  all  of  the  principal  mines  of  the 
district  lie  in  a  very  circumscribed  area  and  on  the  east 
slope  of  the  mountain. 

To  the  east  is  Patos  peak,  in  which  vicinity  a  good  quality 
of  coal  is  found;  other  indications  of  coal  exist  near  White 
Oaks.  Considerable  deposits  of  iron  ore  occur  in  certain  lo- 
calities to  the  northeast;  Lone  mountain  is  nearly  encircled 
by  a  good  class  of  iron  ore.  Splendid  building  stones  from 
the  Cretaceous  sand  rocks  are  near  by. 


176  NEW    MEXICO   MINES  AND   MINERALS. 

Baxter  mountain  received  its  name  from  George  Baxter, 
one  of  the  pioneer  prospectors  of  the  district. 

Jicarilla   District. 

The  Jicarilla  mining  district  lies  to  the  northeast  of  White 
Oaks  about  ten  miles  and  is  about  seven  miles  southeast  of 
Ancho,  a  station  on  the  El  Paso  and  Northeastern  Railway,  in 
Lincoln  county. 

Ancho  peak  is  the  highest  in  the  district;  Monument  peak, 
near  by,  is  a  close  second.  The  elevation  at  the  postoffice,  as 
determined  by  the  writer,  February  4,  1904,  by  barometric 
pressure,  is  7,475  feet  above  tide  water. 

The  most  prominent  land  mark  in  the  district  is  Jack 
mountain,  which  occupies  the  northern  end  of  the  range,  and 
is  conspicuous  for  its  precipitousness  on  its  north  and  west 
faces. 

Quite  a  large  deposit  of  iron  ore  exists  in  the  vicinity  of 
Jack  mountain;  the  percentage  of  silica  is  said  to  be  rather 
high. 

The  country  rock  is  an  altered  granite,  due  to  kaolinization 
of  the  contained  feldspar. 

At  one  time  the  Jicarilla  mountains  were  evidently  much 
higher;  at  least  1,000  feet  appears  to  have  disintegrated,  ex- 
posing the  granite  core  over  the  major  part  of  the]district;  in 
fact,  the  process  of  leveling  seems  to  be  going  on  now  at  as 
rapid  a  rate  as  in  the  past. 

No  large  veins  occur  in  the  region  and  the  seams  and  seam- 
lets  in  the  basal  core  run  in  every  conceivable  direction;  in 
these  seams  the  gold  has  its  origin.  Due  to  disintegration 
of  this  network  of  small  veins  would  account  for  the  placer 
gold  found  so  prevalent  throughout  the  district.  Usually  the 
gold  is  fine  and  does  not  have  the  appearance  of  having  been 
transported  far;  inasmuch,  the  particles  are  angular  and  in 
some  instances  still  adhere  to  the  associated  quartz  vein-stuff. 
Thus,  as  the  process  of  weathering  progressed  the  gold,  ow- 
ing to  its  specific  gravity,  remained  near  its  source,  while  the 
wind  and  water  carried  away  the  constantly  forming  detritus 
of  the  decomposing  rocks.  The  nature  of  the  detritus  on  the 
mountain  slopes,  always  sharp  and  angular,  supports  the 
theory  of  the  genesis  of  the  gold,  and  its  accumulation  is  due 


THE 

UNIVERSITY 

OF 


XK\V    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERA 

to  a  concentration  process  resulting  from  the  weathering  of 
the  mountains. 

Placer  mining  was  conducted  in  the  Jicarillas  by  the  native 
Mexicans  as  early  as  1*50;  they  would  cart  the  dirt  in  one 
direction  and  bring  water  from  another,  and  there  separate 
the  gold  in  a  sort  of  wooden  bowl  called  a  "batea.v  Many  of 
the  old  pits  and  dumps  were  still  visible  in  1880,  at  the  time 
of  the  advent  of  the  American  prospector. 

The  American  Placer  Company  inaugurated  and  operated  a 
large  dredge,  during  the  season  of  1903,  in  one  of  the  gulches 
west  of  the  postoffice;  the  process  proved  too  expensive  to 
pay. 

Numerous  claims  in  both  placers  and  lodes  are  located  and 
held  over  the  entire  district;  so  far,  the  principal  production 
has  come  from  the  placers.  The  fineness  of  the  placer  gold 
is  about  920. 

The  following  is  a  list  of  the  principal  claims  existing  in 
the  Jicarillas  January  1,  1904,  viz: 

Mountain  Boy  group,  Geneva  group,  Iron  King  group, 
Admiral  Dewey  and  Belmont,  Good  Luck,  Belle  of  Memphis, 
Belle  of  NewT  Mexico,  Summit,  Ready  Relief,  Old  Comrade, 
Little  Giant,  Eureka,  Zulu,  Richmond,  Central,  Revenue, 
Exit,  Annex,  Prince  Albert,  Dark  Cloud,  Queen  Victoria, 
Jicarilla,  Placer  company,  Knickerbocker,  Democrat,  Cleve- 
land, Hawkeye,  Juana  Gulch  Placer,  January,  Jane  Anderson 
and  Comery  lode. 

A  belt  or  zone  of  copper  has  recently  been  found  to  pass 
through  on  both  the  east  and  west  sides  of  the  district:  these 
are  receiving  some  attention  at  the  present  writing. 

Red  Cloud  (Gallinas  Mountains)  District. 

Owing  to  the  great  distance,  heretofore,  from  transporta- 
tion, this  mining  section  has  developed  but  little;  the  build- 
ing of  the  El  Paso  and  Northeastern  Railway,  has  eliminated 
this  obstacle  and  it  is  expected  to  witness  a  revival  of  mining- 
in  this  region  in  the  near  future.  The  district  occupies  a- 
portion  of  the  extreme  western  part  of  Lincoln  county  and  is. 
situated  some  twenty-five  miles  east  of  the  Gran  Quivira. 

The  oldest  locations  in  the  district  are  the  Red  Cloud, 
Tenderfoot  and  Deadwood;  these  claims  were  opened  up  a 


OF 

JTYH 

NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS.  179 

number  of  years  ago,  and  the  ore  wras  hauled  in  ox  wagons 
for  a  distance  of  nearly  one  hundred  miles  to  the  Rio  Grande 
smelter  at  Socorro. 

Perhaps,  the  most  promising  property  is  that  of  the  Old 
Hickory;  its  ore  is  principally  c'opper,  but  carries,  also,  a 
good  percentage  of  lead.  The  Hoosier  group  has  excellent 
showings,  and  the  same  thing  may  be  said  of  the  properties 
belonging  to  the  American  Consolidated  Copper  Company. 
The  Sunbeam,  Buckhorse  and  Last  Call  are,  also,  well  known 
and  may  be  considered  promising  propositions. 

Large  iron  deposits  ^exist  in  different  parts  of  the  Gallinas; 
notably,  among  which  may  be  mentioned  the  Harris  group  of 
iron  claims,  which  appears  to  be  the  most  valuable  property 
in  the  district. 

Active  prospecting  and  development  are,  at  this  waiting, 
July  1,  1904,  being  prosecuted;  the  outlook  for  the  district 
has  greatly  improved  since  the  first  of  the  year. 

Trachytes  and  a  variety  of  porphyries  compose  the  gen- 
eral rock  system.  The  principal  veins  are  contacts  between 
the  lime  and  porphyry.  Plenty  of  the  finest  of  timber  can 
be  had  for  all  mining  purposes;  water,  however,  is  quite 
scarce. 


CHAPTER  XXIII. 


COOK'S  PEAK  DISTRICT. 

Rising  out  of  the  alluvial  plain,  twenty  miles  north  of 
Deming,  a  monolith  of  solid  granite  seems  to  pierce  the  blue 
sky.  This  solitary  sentinel  of  the  unspeakable  rocks  marks 
the  southern  terminus  of  the  rugged  Mimbres  range,  reach- 
ing an  altitude  of  8,300  feet  above  sea  level.  Phillip  Cook, 
purported  to  have  been  connected  with  the  United  States 
Army  about  the  year  1860,  is  said  to  have  been  the  first 
white  man  to  scale  the  peak. 

Due  to  this  incident,  this  conspicuous  landmark  has  ever 
afterward  borne  the  name  of  Cook's  Peak. 

The  mining  district  which  lies  around  this  pinnacled  rock 
is  denominated  Cook's-  Peak,  and  lies  in  northern  Luna 
county.  This  district  ranks  among  the  best  lead  producing 
mining  sections  in  New  Mexico. 

The  ore  is  principally  a  lead  carbonate,  yet  in  certain  prop- 
erties galenite  occurs,  especially  on  the  northwest  flank  of  the 
mountain  at  the  Jose  postoffice.  Sand -carbonates  also,  are 
found  in  the  mines  near  the  summit  at  the  Cooks  postoffice, 
and  elsewhere  on  this  side  of  the  summit. 

The  axis  of  the  mountain  peak  has  severed  the  heavy  Car- 
boniferous limestones  into  two  parts,  one  of  which  reaches 
from  the  Graphic  mine  to  a  point  well  up  on  the  mountain  pass 
beyond  the  Cooks  postoffice;  and  the  other  is  across  on  the 
northwest  slope,  near  the  foot  of  the  mountain  at  the  Jose 
postoffice;  these  two  areas  embrace  the  principal  mines  of 
the  district. 

Segregation  of  the  ore  has  baken  place  in  the  usual  manner 
at  or  in  the  lime  contact,  and  the  chief  deposits  occur 
entirely  in  the  limestone  cavities. 

The  principal  production  has  been  in  the  immediate  vicin- 
ity of  Cooks  postoffice,  at  and  near  the  divide,  and  also  at  the 
Graphic  mine  near  the  mouth  of  the  canyon. 

By  far  the  most  important  mines  in  the  district  are  the 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS.  1*1 

Desdemona,  Othello  and  Monte  Cristo,  belonging  to  the 
American  Smelting  and  Refining  Company;  the  Graphic,  be- 
longing to  the  Graphic  Mining  Company;  and  the  Teel  and 
Poe  mines,  known  as  the  Summit  group. 

The  first  of  this  classification  have  produced  nearly  $2,000,- 
0(H>;  the  second  or  Graphic  group  is  credited  with  $450,000; 
and  the  third  or  Summit  group  with  $350,000.  The  remain- 
ing properties  of  the  district  are  entitled  to  a  credit  of  $200.- 
000.  The  total  production  of  the  district  up  to  January  1, 
liK)4,  is  approximately  $3,000,000;  one-fifth  of  this  amount  is 
silver  and  the  four-fifths  is  lead. 

Among  other  important  producers  and  prospects  may  be 
named  the  Lead  King  group,  Contention  group,  Wisconsin 
and  Minnesota,  Mocking  bird  group,  Cleveland,  Excelsior  and 
Roosevelt. 

Over  on  the  Jose  side  the  most  important  property  is  that 
of  the  Faywood  Lead  Company,  which  has  recently  installed 
a  50-ton  plant,  known  as  the  Hooper  pneumatic  process  of 
concentration. 

Should  a  process  of  this  nature  prove  successful,  it  would 
virtually  revolutionize  the  concentration  of  ores  in  a  number 
of  New  Mexican  dry  camps. 

The  White  Oak  group,  Big  Galena,  Monitor  and  Bonanza 
have  favorable  showings  as  prospects. 

Ed  Orr,  who  is  yet  living  in  the  district,  appears  to  be  the 
first  prospector  and  discoverer  of  ore  in  that  region;  this  was 
about  the  year  1876. 

No  excitement  existed  in  the  Cook's  Peak  region  until  after 
the  arrival  of  Taylor  and  Wheeler,  in  the  year  1880.  To  these 
prospectors  is  due  the  credit  of  locating  the  principal  pro- 
ducers of  the  district. 

Their  first  location  was  the  Montezuma  lode;  afterward  the 
Graphic,  Desdemona  and  Othello  claims  were  located. 

During  1881-2  the  outlook  of  the  district  as  a  leading  lead 
producer  was  practically  assured. 

J.  K.  Good  ing  and  Giles  O.  Pierce  purchased  the  Othello 
and  Desdemona  from  Taylor  and  Wheeler  in  1882,  and  after- 
ward sold  the  property  to  the  Consolidated  Kansas  City 
Smelting  and  Refining  Company;  this  latter  company  and  its 


182  NEW    MEXICO   MINES  AND   MINERALS. 

holdings  were  absorbed  later  by  the  American  Smelting  and 
Refining  Company. 

George  L.  Brooks  arrived  at  Cook's  Peak  in  December, 
1881,  and  during  the  summer  of  the  following  year,  under  an 
escort  of  soldiers  from  Fort  Cummings,  graded  the  wagon 
road  up  the  main  canyon  from  its  mouth,  to  the  summit  or 
top  of  the  divide  above  what  is  now  Cooks  postoffice.  Indians 
were  very  troublesome  in  those  days;  Victorio,  the  Apache 
Chief,  had  removed  his  camp  from  near  the  mouth  of  the 
canyon,  through  which  the  road  was  graded  about  two  years 
before.  The  region  of  Cook's  peak  was  a  veritable  strong- 
hold for  the  Apaches  in  the  later  '70s;  it  was  necessary  to 
take  every  precaution,  since  it  was  not  known  when  they 
would  return  to  their  old  haunts  and  ambush  the  unsuspect- 
ing frontiersman. 

After  completing  the  wagon  road  Brooks  hauled  out  2,700 
tons  of  ore,  the  first  ever  taken  out  of  the  camp,  and  delivered 
a  portion  of  it  to  the  Lake  Valley  smelter  and  the  remainder 
was  hauled  to  Florida,  the  nearest  railroad  point,  for  ship- 
ment. 

Florida  District. 

Some  twelve  miles  to  the  southeast  of  Deming  in  Luna 
county  are  the  Florida  mountains,  which  embrace  the  Florida 
mining  district. 

This  range  of  mountains  is  circumscribed  and  isolated, 
being  completely  surrounded  by  the  great  alluvial  plain,  that 
extends  to  the  border  line  of  the  Mexican  Republic,  and  is 
broken  only  in  a  second  place  by  the  conspicuous  peaks  of 
the  Tres  Hermanas,  lying  about  fifteen  miles  farther  to  the 
south  and  west. 

The  stratified  Carboniferous  series  flank  the  range  and  in 
a  few  places  it  has  been  lifted  bodily  upward,  being  sup- 
ported by  the  igneous  members  beneath.  Granite,  gneiss, 
porphyries  and  limestone  are  the  lithological  characteristics 
of  the  district. 

Segregation  of  the  metallic  ores  occurs  along  the  contact 
and  in  the  lime.  The  ores  are  sulphides  and  carbonates  of 
lead,  copper  and  silver. 

The  district  was  first  prospected  in  the  year  1881.     Of  the 


NEW    MEXICO   MINES   AND   MINERALS.  183 

first  prospects,  only  the  Silver  Cave  lode  proved  profitable  to 
work;  it  was  discovered  by  Carroll  brothers.  Eighteen  hun- 
dred tons  of  lead-silver  ore  were  shipped  during  the  time  the 
mine  was  in  operation,  which  brought  $00,000;  work  stopped 
the  latter  part  of  1H85  and  the  owners  went  to  Europe.  The 
Silver  Cave  had  been  idle  since  that  time,  until  September, 
1903,  when  Mr.  James  Carroll  returned  to  Deming  and  put  a 
force  of  men  to  work. 

The  Silver  Cave  group  consists  of  the  Silver  Cave,  Poca- 
hontas,  Sun  Rise  and  Sun  Set,  all  of  which  are  patented. 

Two  promising  copper  claims  are  owned  by  John  Stenson 
of  Deming;  the  vein  seems  to  be  a  fissure  in  the  porphyry 
near  the  lime  contact.  Several  other  properties,  such  as  the 
Bear,  Tiger,  Iron  Mass,  Lead  Carbonate  and  Roosevelt  are 
well  and  favorably  known  throughout  the  district. 

Tres  Hermanns  District. 

The  Tres  Hermanas  district,  in  Luna  county,  lies  almost 
due  south  of  Deming  twenty-five  miles  and  southwest  of  the 
Floridas  some  fifteen  miles.  A  cluster  of  three  peaks  em- 
brace the  district  from  which  it  took  its  name. 

The  ores  are  principally  silver-lead  and  the  general  rock 
formation  is  almost  identical  with  that  found  in  the  Florida 
mountains. 

The  Cincinnati  mine  is  the  most  prominent  in  the  district; 
it  is  given  the  credit  of  having  produced  approximately 
$100,000.  The  deposit  was  near  the  surface;  depth  failed  to 
prove  the  permanency  of  the  ore  body.  Undoubtedly  the 
deposition  of  ore  was  chiefly  due  to  descending  surface 
waters. 

The  Golden  Cross  and  Eagle  Mining  Company  owning  the 
Cincinnati  group,  control  the  Judge  McComas  property  at 
Carrizillo  springs  which  embraces  the  Yellow  Jacket  mine 
and  consists  of  eleven  claims. 

The  Hetty  group  operated  by  A.  J.  Clark  and  associates  of 
Deming  is  at  present  a  producing  lead-silver  property. 

Another  property  of  considerable  merit  is  that  of  the 
Hancock  Mining  Company  which  operates  the  Hancock 
group. 


184  NEW    MEXICO   MINES  AND   MINERALS. 

Victorio  District. 

This  district  is  in  the  western  part  of  Luna  county  im- 
mediately south  of  the  Southern  Pacific  Railway;  Gage  is  the 
nearest  railroad  point.  It  received  its  name  from  being  one 
of  the  chief  haunts  of  the  Apache  Indian  Chief  Victorio,  in 
the  later  seventies  and  earty  eighties. 

The  geological  formations  here  are  much  the  same  as  at 
Tres  Hermanas,  Fremont  and  other  mining  camps  that  lie  in 
the  southwest  central  plain;  being  eruptive  types  of  moun- 
tains and  flanked  by  the  Carboniferous  limestones.  The 
mineralization  occurs  along  the  planes  of  contact;  although, 
true  fissures  exist  in  some  instances.  The  ores  are  princi- 
pally a  silver-lead  product,  and  in  some  cases  good  values  of 
gold  have  been  found. 

Wolframite,  or  more  properly  speaking,  hubernite  is  found 
in  this  locality.  The  St.  Louis  and  Chance  mines  are  the 
ones  which  have  rendered  the  Victorio  region  famous.  Ap- 
proximately $1,150,000  have  been  taken  out  of  the  district  up 
to  January  1,  1904. 

Mr.  Michael  Burke,  as  lessee  of  the  Chance  property,  took 
out  nearly  $85,000  from  that  mine  within  less  time  than  a 
year. 

Stonewall  District. 

This  section  of  New  Mexico  lies  in  southwestern  Luna 
County,  at  the  Hermanas  junction  of  the  El  Paso  and  South- 
western Railway. 

But  little  development  has  ever  been  done  here,  although  a 
few  of  the  prospects  seem  to  have  some  future.  The  metallic 
values  are  chiefly  gold. 


CHAPTER  XXIV. 

COCHITI   DISTRICT. 

This  region  lies  in  the  northeastern  part  of  Sandoval  county, 
almost  directly  west  of  Santa  Fe  and  on  the  opposite  side  of 
the  Rio  Grande  from  that  city. 

Prospecting  was  first  conducted  in  this  district  as  early  as 
1  ^0;  Major  Edward  Beaumont  wTas  among  the  pioneers.  At 
this  time  nothing  favorable  was  discovered  and  in  the  mean- 
time the  prospectors  were  ordered  to  leave  by  the  Mexican 
element,  who  claimed  this  particular  section  of  the  country 
was  a  private  land  grant.  Things  were  dormant  until  1889 
when  an  influx  of  prospectors,  notably  Joe  Eagle,  N.  R. 
D'Arcy,  Thos.  Briggs  and  others,  who  made  locations. 

Eagle  and  D'Arcy  afterward  sold  to  Col.  R.  W.  Woodbury 
of  Denver  the  Iron  King  lode.  Woodbury,  in  1896,  erected  a 
milling  plant  about  seven  miles  below  the  present  site  of 
Bland,  and  now  known  as  the  Woodbury  mill. 

In  May,  1893,  the  Ellen  L.,  Mammoth  and  Washington  loca- 
tions were  made  by  a  Mr.  Pilkey  for  himself,  Henry  Lockhart 
and  Ben  Johnson. 

In  the  fall  of  the  same  year  a  boom  swrept  over  the  district 
and  the  entire  country  was  covered  with  locations. 

The  Crown  Point  group,  consisting  of  the  Crown  Point, 
Giant  and  Ball-of -the- Woods,  was  located  by  J.  D.  May  for 
himself,  Henry  Lockhart,  Ben  Johnson  and  B.  F.  Bruce.  The 
Posey,  Black  Girl,  Little  Casino,  Allerton,  Union  and  others 
were  located  by  George  Hopkins  and  partners. 

In  December,  1*93,  at  the  end  of  the  month,  the  Lone  Star 
group  of  three  claims,  was  located  by  Chester  Greenwood, 
Xorman  Blotcher  and  Henry  Woods  for  themselves  and  Thos. 
Lothian  of  Denver. 

The  noted  Albemarle  group,  which  made  the  camp  famous, 
consists  of  the  Albemarle,  Ontario.  Pamlico  and  Huron,  was 
located  by  the  latter  parties  about  the  first  of  January  in  1894. 

The  Albemarle  group  passed  into  the  hands  of  the  Cochiti 


186  NEW    MEXICO   MINES   AND   MINERALS. 

Gold  Mining  Company,  a  Boston  syndicate,  which  developed 
the  mines  extensively  and  in  1899  late  in  the  season  completed 
a  large  plant  of  300  tons  capacity;  the  electrical  power  being 
supplied  and  transmitted  a  distance  of  35  miles  from  the  coal 
mines  at  Madrid  to  the  mines. 

The  ore  was  reduced  by  dry  crushing  rolls  to  pass  through 
a  24-inch  mesh  and  the  slimes  were  removed  by  exhaust  fans 
— cyaniding  was  the  process  of  gold  extraction, 

The  plant  operated  for  two  and  one-half  years,  producing 
$667,500  in  gold  and  silver,  closing  down  indefinitely  in  the 
spring  of  1902;  since  which  time  the  property  has  been  in  the 
hands  of  a  receiver  and  the  plant  partly  dismantled. 

The  cause  of  the  failure  is  attributed  to  the  gradual  de- 
crease in  the  values  of  the  ore  as  depth  was  reached;  near 
the  surface  the  ore  average  $6.50  per  ton,  at  the  extreme 
depth  the  ore  did  not  exceed  $3.50  per  ton. 

The  ore  body  in  the  Albermarle  was  quite  considerable, 
varying  in  width  from  five  upward  to  nearly  sixty  feet.  The 
main  shaft  is  about  700  feet  on  an  incline  of  approximately 
45°. 

From  a  geological  standpoint  the  Cochiti  district  is  ex- 
tremely interesting.  A  central  core  of  augite-andesite  is 
encompassed  by  a  vast  field  of  tufa  of  a  trachytic  and  brecci- 
ated  nature.  This  enclosing  field  is  destitute  of  any  mineral- 
ization; evidently,  the  andesite  is  the  ore-bearing  member  of 
the  eruptive  series  of  rocks.  From  an  examination  of  the 
nature  of  the  ore  bodies  in  the  district  it  is  inferred  that 
such  mineralization  %is  due  to  circulating  descending  hot 
waters,  which  in  their  downward  course  have  generally  en- 
riched the  veins  nearer  the  surface  more  than  at  greater 
depth.  The  segregation  of  such  mineral  values  must  have 
taken  place  during  and  immediately  after  the  trachitic  tufa 
outbreak. 

In  Peralta  canyon  a  curious  example  occurs  in  the  pres- 
ence of  uranium  and  vanadium  oxide  filling  the  interstices  of 
a  silicified  volcanic  breccia  found  on  the  property  of  the 
Peralta  Gold  Mining  and  Milling  Company. 

The  general  character  of  the  ore  throughout  the  district  is- 
rather  low  grade,  indurated,  flinty,  bluish- white  quartz. 
Much  of  it  is  impregnated  with  small  particles  of  pyrites  of 


M-:\V    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS.  1*7 

iron:  this  latter  feature  is  more  marked  at  depth  where  the 
ore  becomes  more  refractory.  The  principal  value  is  in  gold; 
the  ratio  between  the  gold  and  silver  being  about  two  to 
one. 

The  Lone  Star  is  a  prominent  claim,  having  shipped  a 
quantity  of  ore  averaging  about  $40  to  the  ton. 

The  Washington  joins  the  Lone  Star  on  the  south  and  is  ex- 
tensively developed;  it  is  credited  with  some  production. 

About  one-half  mile  north  of  the  Lone  Star  is  the  Crown 
Point,  which  is  thought  to  be  a  spur  from  the  main  lode.  The 
Laura  S,  Tip  Top,  Iron  King  and  a  number  of  others  have 
been  recognized  at  times  as  producers.  The  Iron  King,  here- 
tofore mentioned,  has  the  distinction  of  being  the  first  claim 
discovered  and  located  in  the  district.  In  Pino  canyon  are 
the  Mammoth,  Ellen  L.  Hopewell,  Good  Hope,  Iron  Queen, 
Black  Girl  and  a  number  of  others  having  more  or  less  devel- 
opment. 

Above  the  Bland  postoffice  on  the  north  side  of  the  canyon 
is  the  Bull-of-the-Woods,  which  vein  has  been  opened  on  the 
Little  Casino.  Near  the  Washington  are  the  Fraction,  Short 
Order  and  Iowa  No.  -. 

Passing  further  south  are  the  Monster,  Corona,  No  Name 
and  Little  Mollie;  the  latter  claim  has  three  distinct  lodes. 
In  Colla  canyon  are  several  locations  which  if  properly  devel- 
oped might  prove  productive. 

Still  further  to  the  south  in  Peralta  canyon  are  numerous 
locations;  in  this  canyon  is  where  the  uranium  and  vanadium 
oxide  occurs  as  already  mentioned.  The  Tom  Boy,  Santa 
Fe  group,  Hanison,  Famous,  Old  Dutch,  Little  Betsey,  Ivan- 
hoe,  Aunt  Betsey,  Acme.  Calumet,  Union,  Del  Fino,  Morning 
Star,  Shannon,  De  Wit,  Strip  No.  2,  Belle  lode,  Navajo,  Golden 
Cochiti  Tunnel  Com  patiy,  Sister  C.,  Cross  Keys,  Puzzle  group, 
Midnight  group,  Wilson  and  Sheridan  group  are  some  of  the 
better  known  locations. 

Nacimiento  District. 

This  district  embraces  the  Nacimiento  or  Jemez  mountains 
and  lies  in  Sandoval  county  on  the  west  side  of  the  Rio 
Grande. 

To  the  southeast,  the  country  is  prominent  for  its  mineral 


188  NEW    MEXICO   MINES   AND    MINERALS. 

springs  and  sulphur  deposits.  This  latter  section  is,  also, 
equally  noted  for  the  many  prehistoric  ruins  found  near  the 
Jemez  and  Sulphur  springs  and  elsewhere  in  that  vicinity. 

Copper  and  coal  seem  to  be  the  minerals  of  the  greatest 
economic  importance.  The  copper  is  found  chiefly  in  sand- 
stone on  the  west  slope  of  the  Nacimiento  mountains. 

The  Nacimiento  range  is  very  uniform  in  height  and  forms 
a  single  ridge  and  is  unbroken  by  any  sharp  peaks;  its  great- 
est elevation  is  10,045  feet  above  tide  water.  Its  extreme 
length  is  about  fifty  miles  north  and  south  and  the  ends 
gradually  pass  into  and  blends  with  the  great  level  plateau 
which  lies  mainly  to  the  west.  The  backbone  or  axis  of  the 
mountain  ridge  is  a  red  granite,  which  forms  the  principal 
and  elevated  portion  of  the  rock-mass. 

The  geological  sequence  from  this  granite  core,  is  the  Car- 
boniferous, Permo-Carboniferous  or  Permian.  Jura-Triassic 
and  the  Cretaceous;  all  of  which  are  exposed  and  readily  rec- 
ognized. 

The  copper  appears  to  have  come  from  the  saliferous  beds 
of  the  Permian;  since  it  occurs  in  the  conglomerates  and 
sandstones  which  immediately  overlie  that  series.  Precipi- 
tation of  the  cupric  solutions  seems  to  have  been  due  to  the 
presence  of  carbonaceous  matter,  rather  than  to  the  associa- 
tion of  iron.  In  evidence  of  this  may  be  seen  the  impress  of 
leaves,  reeds  and  portions  of  trees  which  have  been  com- 
pletely transformed  into  some  forms  of  copper  ore,  preser- 
ving permanently  their  original  outlines.  Some  teeth  of  ex- 
tinct saurians  have  been  taken  out  of  these  beds,  which  are 
classed  as  odontolite,  by  reason  of  their  cupriferous  impreg- 
nations. 

The  principal  copper  properties  of  this  section  of  the  Naci- 
miento mountains  are  owned  by  the  Jura-Trias  Copper  Com- 
pany. This  company  has  done  extensive  development  and  im- 
provements and  own  about  twenty-five  claims,  or  1,000  acres. 

This  mineralized  area  is  approximately  ten  miles  long  by  a 
mile  wide.  The  dip  of  the  formation  averages  45°  toward  the 
west,  and  the  mineralized  zone  or  stratum  is,  perhaps,  50  feet 
thick. 

Of  course,  only  certain  portions  of  this  zone  are  capable  of 
being  profitably  worked. 


NEW    MEXICO   MINES   AND   MINERALS.  189 

Some  evidence  exists  of  early  Spanish  mining  in  the  dis- 
trict; the  proof,  however,  is  not  conclusive. 

To  the  west  a  short  distance  is  a  cropping  of  coal;  so  far  as 
known  the  coal  is  not  coking. 

Dr.  J.  S.  Newberry,  who  accompanied  the  Macomb  Expedi- 
tion in  1859,  was  the  first  to  examine  into  this  part  of  the 
country  from  a  scientific  standpoint. 

A  man  by  the  name  of  Moore,  in  1881,  did  the  first  modern 
prospecting  in  the  district;  these  original  locations  are  now 
embraced  in  the  holdings  of  the  Jura  Trias  Company. 

San  Miguel  District. 

Some  ten  or  twelve  miles  to  the  south  of  the  Jura-Trias  Cop- 
per Company's  property  in  the  same  range,  is  the  San  Miguel 
district.  Only  three  locations  exist  in  the  district;  known  as 
the  San  Miguel  group. 

This  property  was  discovered  and  located  in  1882,  by  Pat 
Carrol  who  died  on  January  4,  1904. 

The  occurrence  of  the  copper  here  is  identically  the  same 
as  that  described  under  the  Nacimiento  district;  in  fact,  it  is 
the  same  copper  bearing  formation.  Large  quantities  of  low 
grade  malachite  exist  in  the  sandstone,  accompanied  by 
kidneys  of  high  grade  copper  glance. 

For  a  great  many  years  the  San  Miguel  property  has  been 
owned  by  J.  J.  Gorman  of  Albuquerque,  who  died  about 
the  middle  of  April,  1904. 


CHAPTER  XXV. 


MINING  DISTRICTS  OF  THE  SANDIA  AND   MAN- 
ZANO  MOUNTAINS. 

These  two  mountain  ranges  belong  to  that  class  of  titled 
orogenic  blocks  that  are  typical  in  New  Mexican  topography. 

In  all  respects  they  are  identical  with  the  Sierra  Oscura 
and  San  Andreas  ranges,  of  which  mention  has  already  been 
made. 

While  these  two  mountain  ranges  are  more  or  less  miner- 
alized, producing  pa3^ing  mines  appear  to  be  foreign  to  them 
up  to  the  present  time.  The  Sandias,  however,  produce 
plenty  of  good  building  stone  and  afford  most  of  the  lime  used 
in  Albuquerque.  Beds  of  good  refractory  clay  and  graphite 
abound  in  the  region. 

Placitas  District. 

On  the  extreme  northern  end  slope  of  the  Sandia  range,  in 
Sandoval  county,  is  the  Placitas  district.  Not  until  recently 
has  this  district  been  active;  although  it  has  been  said  to 
possess  some  merit  for  a  number  of  years.  Copper  appears 
to  be  the  chief  metal,  which  is  associated  with  lead,  silver 
and  gold. 

The  horizon  which  seems  to  carry  the  best  values  is  on  the 
contact  of  the  Carboniferous  limestones;  many  of  these  veins 
are  "blanket"  in  form. 

Some  of  the  principal  groups  and  claims  are  the  W.  J. 
Bryan,  Nineteen-hundred  group,  Balcomb  claims,  Shamrock 
group,  Bibo,  Iron  Cap,  Montezuma  group,  Yellow  Jack  and 
Valley  View  group. 

Sandia  District. 

Lying  toward  the  east  from  the  Placitas  district  in  the  di- 
rection of  South  mountain  and  on  the  northeast  slope  of  the 
Sandia  range,  is  situated  the  Sandia  mining  district. 

Auriferous  beds  of  cement  gravel  occur  along  the  foot  of 
the  northern  slope  of  the  Sandias;  these  gravel  beds  are  now 


Xi:\V    MEXICO    MINKS   AND    MINERALS.  191 

receiving  some  attention,  and  may  finally  be  worked  at  a 
profit. 

The  southern  and  eastern  parts  of  the  district  are  conspic- 
uous by  the  red  character  of  the  formation,  which  is  recog- 
nized as  the  Permian  or  "red  beds."  In  these  rocks  which 
are  tilted  to  the  south  and  west  at  an  angle  of  35'-,  cuprif- 
erous zones  or  bands  exist  and  are  very  similar  to  those  de- 
scribed in  the  Sierra  Oscura,  further  to  the  south;  the  organic 
matter  having  been  replaced  by  copper  compounds  which  re- 
tain the  imprint  of  the  fossil  plants.  This  extraordinary 
condition  of  mineralization  in  the  red  sandstones  is  very 
marked,  as  observed  in  an  examination  made  by  the  writer 
on  the  Texas  group  of  claims,  May  18,  1904.  for  the  Pennsyl- 
vania Copper  Company,  in  the  Sandia  district. 

The  Gold  Ring  and  Maceo  groups  lying  in  another  part  of 
the  district,  apparently  have  a  different  class  of  vein  from 
that  of  the  Texas,  appearing  to  be  of  the  fissure  type.  The 
former  group  is  entirely  gold  bearing,  the  ore  being  a  free 
milling  quartz,  while  the  latter  group  carries  a  sulphide  ore 
containing  gold,  silver,  copper  and  lead. 

Tijeras  Canyon  District. 

It  was  was  from  the  canyon  which  cuts  through  the  heavy 
limestone  plate,  into  the  very  core  of  the  granite  basement  in 
an  east  and  west  line,  dividing  the  Sandia  mountain  range 
into  two  parts,  that  this  district  took  its  name. 

Tijeras  canyon  has  become  noted  as  a  resort  for  Albuquer- 
que people,  the  chief  attraction  being  the  famous  Whitcomb 
Spring. 

In  this  mining  district  prospecting  has  been  carried  on 
from  time  to  time  covering  a  period  of  fifty  years;  its  proxim- 
ity to  Albuquerque  makes  the  region  a  favored  one  for  the 
"tender  foot.'' 

In  certain  localities  along  the  lime  and  porphyry  contact 
the  sulphides  of  iron  and  copper  have  segregated,  carrying 
some  gold  and  silver  values.  No  prominent  producing  mines 
have  ever  been  opened  up  in  the  district.  There  are,  how- 
ever, some  prospects  which  appear  most  promising.  The 
Carnuel  group,  Silver  Dollar,  Long  View  and  Magnolia  No.  1, 
are  worthy  of  being  mentioned.  The  Silver  Dollar  is  owned 


192  NEW    MEXICO    MIXES   AND    MINERALS. 

by  G.  Oxendine  and  son  (darkies),  which  they  have  developed 
in  a  very  creditable  manner. 

Coyote  and  Star  (Hell  Canyon)  Districts. 

These  two  district  lie  south  of  Tijeras  canyon  and  are 
approached  from  the  southwest. 

-Jn  Coyote  canyon  is  the  popular  Coyote  Springs  water: 
these  springs  are  located  at  the  west  end  of  the  large  quartzite 
dike  that  caused  the  rift  in  the  Sandia  range,  and  near  the 
eastern  end  of  which  is  the  Whitcomb  Spring. 

Some  prospecting  was  done  in  this  canyon  by  Americans 
in  the  early  days,  and  it  is  also  thought  that  the  early 
Spanish  explorers  prospected  for  gold  near  the  Chavez  Spring, 
since  some  vestiges  of  old  pits  yet  remain. 

Placer  gold  is  said  to  exist  in  the  gulch  gravels  of  Hell 
canyon  and  the  Reliance  Gold  Mining  Company  was  organized 
on  the  strength  of  this  supposition  and  proposes  to  erect  a 
plant  to  treat  the  auriferous  gravels. 

The  Malagras  and  Golden  groups  are  also  well  known  in 
the  district. 

Manzano  Mountain  District. 

Nothing  of  any  real  value  in  a  mining  enterprise  has  ever 
been  conducted  in  these  mountains,  and  much  the  same  con- 
ditions exist  here  as  in  the  Sandias  lying  to  the  north. 

Within  the  past  two  years  since  1902,  quite  a  number  of 
copper  prospects  have  been  located  in  the  vicinity,  and  to  the 
north  of  Abo  Pass. 

The  copper  occurs  in  a  gray  sandstone,  disseminated  as 
carbonate  through  the  rock,  and  is  very  similar  to  the  copper 
bearing  sandstone  near  Las  Vegas.  Some  very  high  grade 
ore  is  found,  though  on  the  whole  the  average  is  low,  not 
exceeding  4  per  cent  in  metallic  copper. 

The  most  prominent  property  here  is  a  group  of  nine  loca- 
tions owned  by  the  Belen  Carricito  Development  Company. 


CHAPTER    XXVI. 


SILVER  HILL  (Jicarilla)  DISTRICT. 

Far  out  in  the  broad  expanse  of  desert  in  southwest  Otero 
county,  may  be  seen  a  low  isolated  group  of  mountains  rising 
above  the  plain,  having  the  appearance  of  an  island. 

This  desert  isle  is  surrounded  by  a  sea  of  drifting  sands 
and  lies  near  the  center  of  the  plain,  between  the  Organ  and 
the  south  end  of  the  San  Andreas  mountains  on  the  west,  the 
Sacramento  range  on  the  east  and  the  waste  of  the  mys- 
terious "white  sands"  immediately  to  the  north.  This  dot  in 
the  desert,  though  having  the  dimensions  of  twrelve  miles  in 
length  by  four  miles  in  breadth,  embraces  the  Silver  Hill 
(Jarilla)  mining  district.  The  Jarilla  mountains  were,  per- 
haps, never  very  high,  yet  they  have  been  greatly  reduced 
by  erosion  from  their  original  size.  Due  to  this  erosion  are 
the  placer  deposits  at  the  southeast  part  of  the  district. 

The  oldest  rocks  are,  perhaps,  pre-Cambrian;  granite 
occupying  the  northern  portion  of  the  range.  Flanking  and 
dipping  away  from  this  granite  core  are  the  sedimentary 
series;  yet,  throughout  the  district  considerable  areas  of 
these  sedimentaries,  have  been  elevated  and  repose  on  the 
subjacent  granites.  The  general  elevation  of  the  district 
must  have  taken  place  at  the  close  of  the  Cretaceous  or  begin- 
ning of  the  Tertiary. 

Andesite  and  trachyte  flows  with  intrusives  of  granite- 
porphyry  and  diorite  have  played  an  important  role  in  the 
dislocation  of  the  rock  system  and  in  the  immediate  sub- 
sequent segregation  of  ore.  Some  instances  are  found  in 
wrhich  the  porphyry  has  entirely  surrounded  the  Carbon- 
iferous limestone:  this  phenomenon  is  found  on  the  property 
of  the  Three  Bears  Mining  Company. 

Extensive  faulting  seems  to  have  taken  place  after  the 
deposition  of  the  ores.  The  strike  of  the  fault-planes  are 
two  fold:  north-south  and  east  west. 

It  is  observed,  on  the  property  of  the  Three  Bears,  the 
east  and  west  faults,  dislocate  the  north  and  south  veins. 


194  NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS. 

There  are  two  systems  of  fissure  veins  in  the  district,  cut- 
ting alike  all  formations.  The  older  system  has  a  strike  N. 
15°  W.  and  is  badly  faulted;  the  younger  system  has  a  strike 
N.  70°  W.  and  is  undisturbed.  The  dip  is  about  80°  toward 
the  east,  in  the  main  system  of  veins  of  the  Three  Bears. 

Contact  metamorphism  has  greatly  influenced  the  adjacent 
Carboniferous  limestone,  resulting  in  the  formation  of  mas- 
sive garnet  at  numerous  places.  It  would  seem  that  the  por- 
phyritic  intrusives  are  intimately  connected  with  the  origin  of 
the  ore.  These  mineralized  dikes,  through  the  seductive  in- 
fluence of  the  Carboniferous  rocks,  were  induced  to  impart 
with  their  metallic  compounds  along  the  planes  of  contact. 
The  principal  commercial  minerals  of  the  district  are  iron,  gold 
and  copper,  the  latter  metal  exists  under  most  every  form  of 
copper  ore  known.  This  district  is,  also,  noted  for  its  tur- 
quoise, which  bears  evidence  of  prehistoric  working. 

Prospecting  was  first  conducted  in  the  Jarilla  mountains 
by  S.  M.  Perkins  in  1879;  the  district,  however,  did  not  come 
into  prominence  until  nearly  twenty  years  later,  when  Amos 
J.  DeMueles  made  it  famous  through  its  turquoise  dis- 
coveries. 

No  turquoise  mining  was  done  in  the  Jarilla  mountains 
during  1904;  the  mines  being  substantially  closed  down  since 
the  killing  of  DeMueles  by  Jacobo  Flores,  a  Mexican  boy, 
which  occurred  at  Jarilla  in  1898.  The  Three  Bears  Mining 
Company  has  by  far  the  best  developed  property  in  the  camp. 
A  depth  of  more  than  200  feet  has  been  attained,  with  drifts 
at  each  hundred-foot  level.  The  gangue  matter  is  chiefly  calc- 
spar  above  and  at  the  100-foot  level;  but,  at  and  below  the  200- 
foot  level  this  spar  has  given  place  to  soft  masses  of  honey- 
combed quartz,  that  occasionally  carry  fair  values  in  gold  and 
copper.  This  quartz  has  evidently  been  leached  to  a  large 
degree  of  its  values,  and  the  metallics,  no  doubt,  have  been 
redeposited  at  some  greater  depth.  This  lode  of  the  Three 
Bears  can  be  traced  nearly  two  miles  further  north.  So  far 
as  known,  only  one  other  north  and  south  vein  exists  in  the 
camp  and  that  is  the  Nannie  Baird  lode,  on  the  east  side  of 
the  range.  Quite  a  large  production  of  gold  is  accredited  to 
this  property. 

Of  the  younger  veins  the  Little  Annie  and  Garnet  are  ex- 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS. 


195 


am  pies.  The  former  is  in  porphyry  and  an  ore  shoot  quite 
rich  in  gold  has  been  developed.  The  Garnet  lies  two  and  one- 
half  miles  north  of  the  Three  Bears. 

Several  deposits  of  iron  of  good  commercial  value  occur  in 
different  parts  of  the  district. 


Fig,  33  -DRY  WASHER  OF  THE  ELECTRIC  MINING  AND  MILLING 
COMPANY.    Photographed  by  F.  A.  Jones,  19O4. 

The  iron  carries  some  gold;  about  1,500  tons  were  shipped 
from  the  Iron  Queen  lode  in  1903,  to  the  El  Paso  smelter.  In 
some  places,  especially  at  the  -Electric  Placer  Company's 
property,  part  of  the  limestone  has  been  replaced  by  the 
iron. 


196  NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS. 

Placer  mining  is  being  carried  on  to  a  certain  degree  of 
success  by  the  Electric  Mining  and  Milling  Company;  the 
apparatus  employed  is  a  hand  dry- washer.  In  June,  1904,  the 
largest  gold  nugget  ever  found  in  the  district  was  taken  out 
by  this  company;  it  weighed  6|-  ounces  and  was  valued  at 
$123,00. 

Near  bed  rock  or  hard-pan  the  values  per  cubic  yard  are 
$4.00.  The  fineness  of  the  gold  is  940. 

Arrangements  are  being  made  to  work  these  placer  fields 
on  a  much  more  extensive  scale;  provided  water  can  be  had 
in  the  well  now  being  drilled.  The  water  question  is  a  serious 
one;  since  none  is  had  excepting  that  hauled  into  camp  by  the 
E.  P.  &  N.  E.  Railway.  The  south  end  of  the  district  is  distant 
from  Jarilla  Junction  (a  point  on  the  main  line  of  the  E.  P.  & 
N.  E.  R.  R.),  about  three  miles. 

Some  of  the  principal  groups  and  lodes  of  the  district  be- 
side those  already  mentioned  are  the  following: 

The  Alabama  group,  Last  Chance  group,  Monte  Carlo 
group,  Alice  group,  St.  Louis  Copper  Company's  mines,  By 
Chance  group,  Altamont  Mining  Company's  property,  Pena- 
rilla  Mining  Company's  group,  the  Lucky,  Lincoln,  "7  come 
11"  and  Maggie  lodes  and  the  North  End  and  Red  Hill 
groups. 


"SRl 


CHAPTER  XXVII. 


SELITRE,  MINERAL  HILL,  SAN   PABLO,  SAN    MI- 
GUEL AND  TECOLOTE  (Las  Vegas)  DISTRICTS. 

During  the  fall  of  1900  attention  was  first  drawn  to  the 
immense  ledges  of  sandstone  that  were  impregnated  with 
copper,  covering  large  areas  to  the  west  and  southwest  of 
Las  Vegas,  in  San  Miguel  county. 

This  region  embraces  the  mining  localities  of  Seiitre, 
Mineral  Hill,  San  Pablo,  San  Miguel  and  Tecolote,  none  of 
which  are  well  defined  districts. 

While  the  existence  of  copper  was  knowrn  throughout  this 
section  for  many  years,  no  definite  steps  were  taken  toward 
its  exploitation  and  development  until  1900. 

The  sandstone  in  which  the  copper  is  present  resembles 
in  some  particulars  that  found  along  the  east  side  of  the 
Sierra  Oscura  at  Estey  City  and  various  points  further  to  the 
south.  Similar  outcrops,  though  less  extensive,  exist  in  the 
Chupaderas. 

It  seems  that  the  cupriferous  impregnations  have  been 
leached  from  the  Permian  beds  and  redeposited  in  a  particular 
layer  of  subsequent  sandstone,  presumably  Triassic.  The 
deposits  are  usually  "blanket''  in  form  and  as  a  rule  of  very 
low  grade;  averaging  less  than  three  per  cent  of  metallic 
copper.  The  type  of  the  ore  thus  found,  is  principally 
malachite;  although,  occasional  pockets  of  high  grade  glance 
are  encountered. 

Leaching  appears  to  be  the  only  process  by  which  the  ores 
can  be  successfully  treated;  two  experimental  plants  have 
quite  recently  been  making  trial  runs,  which  seem  to  offer  a 
fair  degree  of  success. 

Evidently,  the  time  is  near  at  hand  when  almost  every  ton 
of  this  ore  will  be  subjected  to  treatment. 

A  small  advance  above  the  present  price  of  the  red  metal 
will  likely  see  Las  Vegas,  within  the  near  future,  assume  all 
the  dignities  of  a  typical  copper  camp. 


198  NEW    MEXICO   MINES  AND   MINERALS. 

Prominent  in  the  Selitre  district  are  the  Selitre,  Copper 
Queen,  Last  Chance  and  Santa  Isabelle  groups;  in  the  San 
Pablo  district,  the  Overflow,  Gonzales  and  Santa  Rita  groups 
constitute  the  principal  properties;  and  in  the  San  Miguel 
and  Mineral  Hill  districts  may  be  mentioned  the  Copper  King, 
Santa  Maria  and  Mystic  groups. 

Prospecting  in  this  region,  until  recently,  has  been  gravely 
hampered  and  handicapped;  the  chief  hindrance  being  due  to 
unconfirmed  land  grants,  which  barred  absolute  title  and 
possession.  Since  the  matter  of  title  has  lately  been  finally 
adjusted  by  the  courts,  prospectors  are  now  more  active  in 
their  work. 

Rociada  District. 

North  of  Las  Vegas,  in  San  Miguel  county,  near  the  Mora 
county  line,  in  the  vicinity  of  the  village  of  Rociada,  a  new 
mining  field  is  being  developed. 

The  Rociada  district  had  its  birth  in  June,  1900.  Since  that 
time  much  prospecting  has  been  done;  copper  associated  with 
iron  seems  to  be  the  predominating  feature  of  the  camp. 

The  formation  is  granite  with  associated  porphyries.  These 
are  traversed  by  mineralized  dikes  having  a  general  north 
and  south  strike.  The  mineralized  zone  seems  to  be  about 
five  miles  in  width  and  twelve  miles  in  length.  Small  values 
in  gold  and  silver  occur  associated  with  the  copper-iron  ores. 

Considerable  development  has  been  done  on  the  Rising  Sun 
group,  owned  by  Governor  O.  A.  Hadley  and  others.  Parllel- 
ing  the  vein  of  the  Rising  Sun  is  the  Azure  lode,  which  is  also 
being  developed.  The  Joe  and  Jennie  group,  the  Lone  Star 
and  numerous  locations  have  been  made  and  considerable 
work  done.  The  district  has  never  produced,  the  grade  of  the 
ore  being  insufficient  to  stand  the  long  wagon  haul  to  the 
railroad. 

The  occurrence  of  lead  and  zinc  has  been  noticed  in  a  small 
way. 

Coyote  District. 

Still  farther  to  the  north  in  the  vicinity  of  the  Guadalupita 
postoffice,  Mora  county,  is  some  copper  property  which  has 
been  developed  to  a  considerable  extent.  The  ore  occurs  in 
a  black  and  bluish  shale.  Malachite  predominates,  though 


NEW    MEXICO   MINES  AND   MINERALS.  199 

high  grade  copper  glance  occurs  sparingly,  associated  with 
the  carbonate  compound;  the  grade  of  the  ore  is  low. 
.  This  property  is  known  as  the  Overton  group. 

Miscellaneous  and  New  Districts. 

In  various  parts  of  New  Mexico,  in  no  recognized  districts 
or  localities  that  are  difficult  to  describe,  prospecting  is  being 
carried  on  with  possibilities  of  success. 

Near  the  Willis  postoffice  on  the  upper  Pecos  the  Edna 
group  of  mines  are  being  developed;  the  ore  is  a  sulphide  and 
carries  values  in  copper,  gold  and  silver.  In  the  Bernall  dis- 
trict is  the  Maggie  group,  carrying  malachite. 

In  the  Cooper  district,  in  the  upper  Pecos  region,  are  the 
Barthe  group  and  the  Willow  Creek  group;  the  latter  prop- 
perty  belongs  to  the  Pecos  River  Mining  Company.  Near 
Glorieta  and  north  toward  the  Rio  Pecos,  R.  A.  Bradley,  the 
hermit  miner,  has  done  extensive  developement  on  several 
properties  of  gold,  silver,  copper  and  lead. 

Within  three  miles  of  Santa  Fe,  are  found  mineral  indica- 
tions that  will  doubtless  receive  attention  some  time.  This 
latter  region  abounds  in  copper,  gold,  silver,  coal  and  iron. 
The  Sunset  group  of  claims  lie  about  three  miles  northwest 
of  Santa  Fe  and  are  being  developed  under  the  supervision  of 
A.  R.  Gibson,  the  present  mayor  of  that  city.  Near  Monu- 
ment Rock,  about  nine  miles  east  of  Santa  Fe,  large  ledges  of 
low  grade  gold  ore  are  said  to  exist;  considerable  develop- 
ment has  been  done  there.  On  Indian  creek  is  the  Annie 
Jones  group,  which  is  very  favorably  located,  and  seems  to 
have  a  future. 

Along  the  "scenic  route''  leading  from  Santa  Fe  to  Las 
Vegas  a  number  of  lode  mines  are  being  developed,  especially 
in  Dalton  canyon.  In  the  vicinity  of  the  Gravel  Cabin,  and 
below  that  point  there  are  some  fairly  good  sized  veins  of 
coal  being  opened  up. 

The  whole  of  the  country  lying  to  the  northeast  of  Santa 
Fe,  covered  by  the  Pecos  Forest  Reserve,  is  known  to  be 
mineralized,  but  is  generally  passed  by,  since  the  average 
prospector  prefers  to  avoid  any  complications  which  might 
arise  from  being  on  a  government  reservation. 


200  NEW    MEXICO    MINES  AND   MINERALS. 

District  in  Zuni  Mountains. 

In  the  Zuni  range  of  mountains  in  northwestern  Valencia 
county  a  number  of  camps  and  small  mining  districts  exist. 
None  of  these  districts,  perhaps,  has  ever  been  fully  or 
properly  organized  and  all  of  them  are  referred  to  the  Zuni 
mountains  for  want  of  better  description. 

Copperton  is  the  most  prominent  of  these  districts  and  is 
the  best  developed  section;  it  lies  near  the  center  of  the 
mineralized  region. 

Since  the  country  is  new,  our  knowledge  of  the  district  is 
necessarily  limited. 

It  appears  that  there  are  three  principal  belts  or  places  in 
which  the  ore  deposits  are  the  most  prominent.  In  township 
ION.  range  11  W.  of  the  New  Mexico  principal  meridian,  in 
which  township  the  Montezuma  Mining  Company  is  located; 
township  11  N.  range  12  W.  embraces  the  Conductors  com- 
pany and  others  and  which  also  includes  Copper  Hill;  and 
township  10  N.  range  12  W.  contains  Copperton  postoffice  and 
the  Copperton  Mining  Company. 

North  of  Copperton  the  Gold  Lode  Tunnel  Company  are 
developing  an  iron  dike  which  lies  in  limestone  and  porphyr}7. 
The  Fourth  of  July  location  has  a  shaft  down  100  feet;  it 
belongs  to  the  Montezuma  Company.  The  Compromise  lode 
is  a  promising  prospect. 

Considerable  activity  is  manifested  in  the  Zuni  country 
and  it  would  appear  that  not  a  great  while  will  elapse  until 
the  worth  of  the  region  is  known. 

Guadalupe  Mountains. 

This  low  isolated  range  extends  in  a  southeasterly  direction 
and  lies  partly  in  the  counties  of  Chaves,  Otero  and  Eddy. 

The  section  has  been  but  meagerly  prospected,  though 
the  "indications  are  good  for  copper  and  gold.  The  old 
Nymeyer  copper  mine  is  the  best  known;  the  Standard  Old 
Company  of  Carlsbad  recently  purchased  this  property  and 
contemplate  extensive  development  in  the  near  future. 
Numerous  locations  along  various  parts  of  the  range  have 
been  made  during  the  past  year  and  good  results  are  expected 
by  those  who  know  the  country  best. 


CHAPTER  XXVIII. 


IRON. 

Behold  me:  Though  rusty  and  covered  with  moss  I  :im  kiny  of  the  metals.  My  ribs 
of  steel  girdle  the  jjlobe.  Vitalized  by  the  breath  of  steam  and  electricity  the  com- 
merce oi  the  world  rides  on  my  back. 

Iron  is  the  most  abundant  and  widely  distributed  of  the 
useful  metals. 

The  increased  use  of  iron,  indicates  periods  of  greatest 
prosperity. 

Iron  forms  compounds  with  several  of  the  elements,  chief- 
ly sulphur  and  oxygen.  The  principal  ores  of  iron  are  pyr- 
rhotite,  pyrite,  siderite,  magnetite,  hematite  and  limonite. 
The  two  first  are  sulphides,  the  third  a  carbonate,  the  fourth 
and  fifth  oxides  and  the  last  a  hydrous  oxide;  the  three  last 
are  the  chief  ores  from  which  comes  the  world's  supply  of 
iron. 

Very  little  has  yet  been  done  to  exploit  the  iron  fields  of 
X^w  Mexico;  hence,  our  knowledge  as  to  their  extent  and 
character  is  necessarily  superficial.  Only  one  deposit  is  now 
being  worked;  this  is  at  Fierro,  Grant  county,  operated  by 
the  Colorado  Fuel  and  Iron  Company.  The  production  for 
the  year  1903  was  187,269  tons. 

The  principal  iron  field  seems  to  lie  in  eastern  Socorro  and 
western  Lincoln  counties;  although,  deposits  of  more  or  less 
magnitude  are  distributed  throughout  the  Territory. 

Generally,  the  iron  is  of  fair  quality  and  is  suitable  for  the 
making  of  good  steel.  On  the  whole,  a  greater  quantity  of 
phosphorus  is  contained  in  the  western  iron  ores,  than  is 
found  in  the  deposits  about  the  great  lakes.  This  objection 
is  overcome  to  a  certain  degree  by  the  low  percentage  of 
silica. 

The  iron  ores  at  Fierro  run  very  low  in  phosphorus;  but, 
much  of  the  iron  is  rendered  unfit  for  steel  and  other  pur- 
poses, on  account  of  the  presence  of  copper  and  a  high  per- 
centage of  silica.  As  a  general  rule  all  of  the  large  deposits 
of  iron  ore  in  New  Mexico  lie  on  the  contact  between  lime- 


202  NEW    MEXICO   MINES  AND   MINERALS. 

stone  and  porphyry.  There  is  scarcely  an  exception  to  this 
rule.  Occasionally,  deposits  are  met  with  where,  seemingly, 
no  lime  had  ever  occurred  in  juxtaposition  with  the  iron;  but 
a  careful  examination  will  either  reveal  this  condition  exist- 
ing, or  it  will  show  that  the  limestone  has  been  removed  by 
erosion;  since  the  lime  always  forms  the  top  covering  or  en- 
cases the  iron.  This  top  covering  or  hanging  wall  is  in  nearly 
all  cases  a  very  hard  blue  limestone  of  variable  thickness  and 
generally  destitute  of  fossils,  on  account  of  metamorphism. 
The  iron  in  most  every  instance,  rests  on  an  intrusive  por- 
phyritic  sheet  or  dike.  This  condition  being  so  general,  the 
first  supposition  by  the  writer  was,  that  the  genetic  existence 
of  the  iron  was  due  in  some  manner  to  the  dike  or  intrusive 
sheet. 

A  study  of  the  origin  of  most  of  the  New  Mexico  deposits 
of  iron  ore  can  best  be  made  at  the  Jones  iron  group,  in  the 
Jones  mining  district,  eastern  Socorro  county,  which  seems 
to  be  typical,  in  a  general  way,  throughout  the  Territory. 
These  deposits  are,  perhaps,  the  most  extensive  in  the  Terri- 
tory; extending  as  they  do  along  a  great  monzonite  dike  which 
runs  a  little  south  of  east,  for  a  distance  of  ten  miles,  cutting 
at  right  angles  across  and  through  the  north  end  of  the 
Sierra  Oscura.  Nearly  south  of  this  main  deposit  is  a  much 
smaller  one  occurring  on  a  similar  parallel  monzonite  dike; 
the  geological  conditions  of  the  two  are  identical.  It  is  more 
than  probable  that  the  gnesis  of  these  deposits  is  due  to  the 
leaching  of  the  iron  values  from  the  surrounding  field  of  Car- 
boniferous limestone.  The  rounded  and  peculiar  shape  of 
many  of  these  iron  aggregations  would  indicate  that  they  had 
previously  filled  a  cavity;  in  other  instances  the  iron  appears 
to  have  replaced  stratas  of  limestone  of  uniform  thickness. 
Moreover,  the  accumulation  of  the  deposits  has  a  bedded  or 
stratified  appearance  which  would  indicate  the  presence  of 
water  in  the  cavities  at  the  time  the  iron  was  precipitated  and 
laid  down. 

Further,  the  peculiarities  in  the  roughness  of  the  limestone 
and  the  many  caverns  and  depressions  or  sinks  indicate  the 
circulation  of  much  water  at  one  time.  Underlying  some  of 
the  limestone  covering  or  capping  and  in  the  horizontal  bed- 
ded seams,  all  through  the  district,  small  isolated  patches  of 


NEW    MEXICO   MINES  AND   MINERALS.  203 

irdh  stained  deposits  exist,  which  became  stranded  during 
the  time  the  leaching  was  in  progress.  At  the  time  of  this 
geological  period,  about  the  close  of  the  Cretaceous,  heavy 
vegetation  evidently  existed  on  the  lands  projecting  above 
the  seas.  Decaying  organic  matter  was  carried  into  the 
earth  and  the  limestone  rocks  by  circulating  meteoric 
waters;  the  organic  matter  coming  into  contact  with  the  par- 
ticles of  iron  oxide  which  were  disseminated  through  the 
rocks,  were  reduced  to  the  ferrous  state  and  thus  passed 
into  solution.  These  solutions  finally  reached  the  ever  en- 
larging limestone  cavities  and  were  there  precipitated  on  ex- 
posure to  the  air,  as  hydrated  iron  (limonite).  It  was  in  this 
manner  that  these  beds  of  iron  were  laid  down. 

The  deep  carving,  cutting  to  the  very  base  of  the  Carbonif- 
erous series  to  the  porphyries  below,  naturally  created  a 
line  of  weakness  or  least  resistance  which  favored  the  eleva- 
tory  movement  of  the  huge  monzonite  dike  which  gradually 
shouldered  itself  upward  supporting  the  great  masses  of 
limestone  and  iron  on  its  back. 

This  disturbance  necessarily  checked  the  overlying  rocks 
and  was  accompanied  by  escaping  sulphuric  acid  gas  which 
in  turn  attacked  the  limestone  resulting  in  the  formation  of 
the  associated  beds  of  gypsum.  The  limestone  mold  which 
originally  acted  as  a  support  and  determined  the  size  and 
shape  of  the  deposit  was  thus,  eventually  carried  away  and 
left  some  of  the  masses  of  iron  ore  stranded  on  top  of  the 
dike,  whilst  other  aggregations  slipped  down  its  sides  and 
now  rest  at  or  near  the  bottom  of  the  porphyritic  intrusive. 
Sometimes  the  iron  is  found  on  one  side  and  then  on  the 
other  side  of  the  dike  as  well  as  on  the  top  as  before  des- 
ignated. Slicken-sides  are  frequently  observed  on  the 
iron  which  bear  out  the  theory  that  deposition  of  the  ore 
took  place  prior  to  the  elevation  of  the  dike.  Owing  to  the 
contact  of  this  igneous  dike  with  the  lime  and  iron,  some 
metamorphism  resulted  in  a  somewhat  mild  degree  in  both 
the  iron  and  the  lime. 

The  iron  was  dehydrated  and  most  all  of  the  marcasite 
which  was  formed  with  the  limestone  at  that  time  was  desul- 
phurized. Immediately  along  the  contact  of  the  blue  lime- 
stone most  of  the  fossils  were  obliterated. 


<o 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS. 


I'D") 


Such  an  exegesis  genetically  concerning  the  iron  deposits 
of  the  Jones  district,  will  virtually  apply  to  nearly  all  of  the 
other  deposits  in  New  Mexico. 

To  the  north  some  twenty  live  miles  are  the  Blackington 
and  Harris  deposits,  discovered  by  W.  T.  Harris  in  April,  1903. 


Fig.  35-MASSIVE  IRON  CROPPINGS,  JONES  GROUP.      Photographed 

by  F.  A.  Jones,  19O2. 
(P.  C.  (Pete)  Bell,  Prospector  of  the  Early  '80s,  in  Center  of  Picture.) 

The  mode  of  occurrence  of  iron  at  this  point  is  identical  with 
that  in  the  Jones  district.  Here  the  iron  is  found  at  intervals 
on  either  side  of  a  similar  monzonite,  dike,  though  the  deposits 
are  not  nearly  so  large.  This  locality  is  in  the  Chnpadera 
mountains,  Socorro  county,  and  westerly  from  the  prehistoric 
ruins  of  the  Gran  Quivira,  about  twenty  miles.  East  of  the 


206  NEW    MEXICO    MINES  AND   MINERALS. 

Blackington  and  Harris  deposits  and  southeasterly  from  the 
Gran  Quivira  about  fifteen  miles,  in  the  Gallinas  mountains, 
is  another  large  deposit,  the  extent  -of  which  is  not  known. 
This  propety  is  known  as  the  Harris  group,  discovered  by  W. 
T.  Harris  and  Lon  Jenkins  in  March,  1903,  and  is  in  the  Red 
Cloud  or  Gallinas  mountains  mining  district,  in  western  Lin- 
coln county. 

Southeasterly  from  the  Gallinas  mountains  about  ten  miles, 
and  north  of  Tecolote  station  three  miles,  on  the  El  Paso  and 
Northeastern  Railway,  is  another  deposit  of  a  very  fine  grade 
of  iron  ore.  This  is  known  as  the  Rock  Island  group  of  iron 
mines,  and  was  discovered  by  P.  C.  Bell  in  July,  1903.  The 
property  is  very  favorably  located  as  the  E.  P.  &  N.  E.  Railway 
runs  through  the  same. 

Southeast  of  Tecolote  some  fifteen  miles  distant  is  the 
Jicarilla  mining  district.  A  number  of  good  deposits  of  iron 
are  to  be  found  in  the  vicinity  of  Jack  mountain,  Lincoln 
county.  The  iron  in  this  district  is  of  fair  quality,  being 
somewhat  more  silicious  than  the  ore  bodies  above  de- 
scribed. White  Oaks  seems  to  have  considerable  iron  in  its 
immediate  vicinity.  These  deposits  are  very  similar  in 
character  to  those  already  described,  and  have  been  exploited 
but  little. 

In  the  vicinity  of  the  upper  Rio  Pecos  and  Las  Vegas,  good 
sized  bodies  are  reported,  but  lack  verification. 

A.  J.  Frank  of  Algodones  and  associates,  have  some  iron 
locations  in  the  north  end  of  the  Sandia  mountains  in  the 
Placitas  district;  this  deposit  is  of  the  bog-iron  character.  In 
the  iron  mountain  at  Elizabethtown  quite  a  deposit  of  hematite 
occurs, 

The  Kennedy  mines  at  Glorieta  have  been  developed  con- 
siderably, and  the  ore  at  one  time  was  extensively  mined  and 
shipped.  The  nature  of  this  deposit  is  somewhat  different 
from  the  other  deposits;  although  its  genesis  is  virtually  the 
same. 

Some  properties  in  the  vicinity  of  San  Pedro,  known  as  the 
Perry  deposits  have  been  exploited  somewhat.  The  ore  car- 
ries a  little  gold  and  is  said  to  be  very  silicious. 

In  the  Cuchillo  range  of  mountains,  south  of  Chloride,  a 
very  large  body  (mountain)  of  ore  is  said  to  exist;  this  is 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS.  207 

known  as  the  Iron  Mountain  group.  Owing  to  its  great  dis- 
tance from  transportation  the  material  cannot  be  utilized  at 
the  present  time.  From  the  Iron  Queen  lode  in  the  Jarilla 
mountains  3,000  tons  of  ore  were  shipped  during  1903;  other 
properties  here  seem  favorable. 

The  most  prominent  iron  mines  in  New  Mexico  are  situated 
in  the  Hanover  gulch  at  Fierro,  in  the  Central  district.  This 
property  has  long  been  known  to  exist;  its  early  history  is 
contemporaneous  with  the  celebrated  Santa  Rita  and  Hanover 
copper  mines,  when  its  magnetic  properties  attracted  atten- 
tion, in  the  early  part  of  the  19th  century. 

As  mentioned  near  the  beginning  of  this  chapter  the  prop- 
erty is  being  wrorked  by  the  Colorado  Fuel  &  Iron  Company. 
The  ore  is  shipped  to  the  steel  plant  at  Pueblo,  Colorado. 
This  iron  rests  on  porphyry  and  is  in  contact  with  limestone. 
The  iron  evidently  has  been  leached  from  the  adjacent  rocks 
through  the  agencies  of  organic  matter  and  meteoric  waters. 
Considerable  quantities  of  maganese  are  found  at  times  in 
various  parts  of  the  deposit. 

In  the  Canyoncito  district,  Socorro  county,  just  across  the 
Rio  Grande  northeast  of  San  Acacia,  numerous  croppings  of 
iron  ore  exist,  apparently  in  the  granite;  its  character  is  very 
silicious. 

South  of  Hachita  toward  the  Big  Hatchet  mountains  one  or 
two  fairly  large  deposits  of  iron  ore  have  been  reported;  these 
finds  have  not  yet  been  verified. 

A  large  deposit  of  manganiferous  iron  ore  lies  west  and 
adjoins  the  town  of  Silver  City.  Considerable  development 
has.been  done  on  the  property  and  much  of  the  ore  was  used 
as  fiux  in  the  Silver  City  Reduction  Plant,  when  the  same 
was  in  operation  a  short  time  ago.  This  ore,  generally,  car- 
ries.a  high  percentage  of  silica  and  quite  a  percentage  of 
manganese. 

On  the  whole,  New  Mexico  appears  from  a  cursory  stand- 
point, to  be  well  endowed  with  great  quantities  of  iron  which 
will  shortly  command  the  attention  of  investors.  In  fact,  the 
true  mineral  wealth  of  the  territory  unquestionable  lies  in 
her  extensive  deposits  of  coal  and  iron. 

The  following  is  an  analysis  of  an  average  sample  of  the 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES  AND   MINERALS.  "209 

best  grade  of  iron  ore  from  the  Jones  mining  district,  as 
made  in  1902,  by  the  Seamon  Assay  Company  of  El  Paso. 

Silica -.00', 

Iron (36.40 

Lime 30 

Magnesia  1 . 25 

Sulphur 07 

Manganese trace 

Alumina .50 

Phosphorus 09 

Moisture 20 

After  ignition  (gain) 77 

This  iron  is  magnetic  to  a  certain  extent,  in  a  number  of 
places. 

Analyses  of  two  samples  of  iron  from  the  Blackington- 
Harris  deposits,  which  lie  to  the  north  of  the  Jones  district, 
are  here  given: 

(Elston  E.  Jones,  analyst.  May  22,  1903,  University  of  New  Mexico). 

Constituents.  No.   1.  No.  2. 

Iron 58.7$  64.1^ 

Silica 13.6  7.9 

Lime 3.0  1.2 

Manganese.     trace  trace 

Phosphorus trace  trace 

Sulphur trace  trace 


CHAPTER  XXIX. 


COAL. 

A  lump  of  coal  may  be  regarded  as  a  receptacle  in  which  a 
definite  amount  of  energy  from  the  sun  has  been  effectually 
bottled  up,  throughout  an  indefinite  period  of  time. 

In  other  words,  a  piece  of  coal  may  with  propriety,  be 
termed  "a  parcel  of  stored  sunbeams."  This  entrapped  sun- 
light represents  undissipated  energy  of  the  geological  past. 
The  enormous  energy  pent  up  in  the  coal  fields  of  the  wrorld 
is  beyond  comprehension. 

By  the  magic  touch  of  the  chemist's  wand,  this  black  pro- 
duct was  forced  to  restore  the  beautiful  colors  of  the  aniline 
dyes  to  the  "temple  of  the  sun"  and  the  "bow  of  promise'' 
from  whence  they  were  taken  millions  of  years  ago. 

Carbon  is  among  the  most  subtle  and  wonderful  of  all  the 
elements  in  its  selective  and  polygamous  habits;  its  combina- 
tions with  oxygen  and  hydrogen  seem  to  be  practically  un- 
limited. Its  union  with  these  two  elements  forms  coal,  which 
product  belongs  to  the  hydro-carbon  series.  It  appears  that 
the  decomposition  of  vegetation  under  certain  conditions,  in 
the  earlier  geological  periods,  is  the  origin  of  the  coal  depos- 
its as  we  now  find  them. 

The  elementary  composition  of  all  these  substances  is  prac- 
tically the  same;  and  there  seems  to  be  a  gradual  passage  of 
plant  tissues  through  all  the  intermediate  stages  leading  up 
to  and  terminating  in  graphite. 

The  arrangement  of  this  combination  of  the  hydro-carbons 
is  best  shown  in  the  following  table : 


Substance 

Carbon 

Hydrogen 

Oxygen 

Wood   

4  75 

12  18 

83  07 

Peat     

34  43 

9.85 

55  67 

Lignite  

49.21 

8.37 

42  42 

Coal                    

72.  Ho 

6.12 

21.23 

Anthracite 

95  42 

2  84 

1  74 

O  raphite 

100  00 

NEW    MEXICO   MINES   AND   MINERALS.  211 

It  is  claimed  that  coal  was  first  discovered  in  the  United 
States,  in  1679,  at  a  point  near  the  present  site  of  Ottawa, 
Illinois. 

The  discovery  of  coal  in  New  Mexico  is  not  attributed  to 
any  particular  locality  or  person.  The  first  mention  of  its 
existence  in  the  territory  was  by  Governor  Chacon,  in  1803, 
who  says,  "that  copper  is  abundant  and  apparently  rich, 
though  no  mines*  are  worked,  though  there  is  much  coal  of 
good  quality." 

The  first  vein  of  coal  opened  in  New  Mexico  was  in  the 
Carthage  field,  at  what  is  known  as  the  "Government  mine." 
General  Estanislado  Montoya  mined  coal  from  this  place  in 
1S63,  and  hauled  the  product  to  Fort  Craig  to  supply  the  needs 
of  that  military  post  during  the  Civil  War.  It  was  from  this 
connection  that  the  mine  received  its  name. 

General  Montoya  claimed,  at  that  time,  the  whole  of  the 
Carthage  field,  as  being  a  part  of  his  private  land  grant, 
which  later  was  declared  by  the  Court  of  Private  Land  Claims 
as  part  of  the  public  domain. 

The  second  coal  mined  was  at  Madrid  in  the  Cerrillos  field, 
in  1869.  Work  was  done  here  in  two  localities  by  the  New 
Mexico  Mining  Company.  At  the  first  of  these  places  the  de- 
velopment consisted  in  two  openings  from  which  280  tons 
were  mined,  which  the  company  used  for  steam  purposes  in 
their  stamp-mill,  at  the  Old  Placers,  near  by.  The  other 
point  of  work  was  a  short  distance  to  the  southwest  from  the 
first  openings;  100  tons  were  piled  on  the  dump  ready  for 
use.  In  both  localities  the  work  was  done  on  one  of  the  an- 
thracite veins.  These  observations  were  made  by  R.  W.  Ray- 
mond in  1870;  and  both  were  on  the  anthracite  vein. 

Some  of  this  anthracite  coal  was  tested  at  Santa  Fe,  by  Mr. 
Brucker  in  his  assaying  furnace,  at  that  time.  He  states  that 
he  was  able  to  obtain  a  white  heat  in  a  very  short  time  and 
that  its  lasting  qualities  were  about  three  times  as  long  as 
that  produced  by  an  equal  weight  of  charcoal. 

Coal  was  known  to  exist  in  1870,  at  several  other  places:  at 
a  point  about  ten  miles  south  of  the  anthracite  deposits  at 
Madrid;  near  Galisteo  creek;  on  the  Pueblo  Indian  reserva- 

*This  verifies  the  statement  that  the  Santa  Rita  mine  had  not  begun   operations 
prior  to  1803. 


212  NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS. 

tion  near  Taos  at  the  foot  of  the  Pueblo  mountains;  on  the 
Vermejo,  Raton  mountains,  near  Maxwell's — vein  six  feet 
thick;  on  the  Purgatoire  river,  Las  Vegas;  at  the  Rio  Puerco; 
in  the  San  Mateo  mountains;  and  several  places  west  of  Fort 
Wingate.  Approximately  400  tons  of  coal  were  produced  in 
New  Mexico  in  1870. 

Many  of  the  coal  veins  in  the  territory  attain  a  thickness 
of  six  feet.  The  thickest  deposits  are  supposed  to  occur  in 
San  Juan  county.  Some  of  those  beds  are  said  to  be  forty 
feet  in  thickness;  these  reports  have  not  yet  been  verified. 

The  largest  vein  of  coal  in  the  world  is  at  Bruhl,  near 
Cologne;  it  has  attained  a  thickness  of  340  feet  in  some  places 
—it  is  a  brown  coal. 

Of  the  coal  deposits  of  the  world,  New  Mexico  has  been  so 
generously  provided,  that  many  other  portions  of  the  globe 
lack  much  or  all  of  their  equity. 

It  is  not  necessary  to  go  far  from  the  limits  of  the  territory 
to  find  this  disparagement;  for  Arizona  and  the  Republic  of 
Mexico  have  been  unduly  discriminated  against,  in  this 
particular,  in  the  economy  of  nature. 

The  estimated  coal  area  of  the  world  is  approximated  at 
4,650,000  square  miles.  China  is  credited  with  4,000.000  of 
these,  or  more  than  six  times  the  rest  of  the  coal  area  of  the 
globe. 

Next  to  China  comes  the  United  States  with  280,000  square 
miles;  France,  2,086  square  miles;  Germany,  1,770  square 
miles;  and  Belgium  510  square  miles. 

The  coal  area  of  New  Mexico  cannot  be  definitely  approx- 
imated at  the  present  time;  yet  it  will  be  safe  to  estimate  the 
area  at  2,500  square  miles. 

Area,  however,  cannot  always  be  relied  on  as  a  correct  crite- 
rion of  value.  The  anthracite  fields  of  Pennsylvania  embrace 
an  area  of  only  468  square  miles,  yet  these,  undoubtedly,  are 
of  more  value  than  any  other  like  coal  area  in  the  world. 

The  world's  production  of  coal  for  1902,  according  to  the 
United  States  Geological  Survey,  was  884,795,343  short  tons. 

Of  this  amount  the  United  States  is  credited  with  301,582,- 
348  tons;  this  is  a  little  more  than  one-third  of  the  entire  coal 
supply  of  the  world. 

It  is  difficult  to  conceive  of  the  magnitude  of  the  production 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS. 


213 


of  coal  in  the  United  States.  To  illustrate,  suppose  that 
twenty-two  tons,  the  average  car  load,  are  placed  in  a  car;  this 
would  give  13,708,288  cars.  Allowing  forty  feet,  which  in- 
cludes couplings  for  the  length  of  each  car,  this  would  make 
up  a  train  103,850  miles  long,  sufficient  to  girdle  the  globe 
more  than  four  times  at  the  equator. 

The  amount  of  ore  mined  in  New  Mexico,  in  1903,  reached  a 
total  of  1,359,530  tons;  this  would  form  a  train  of  61,797  cars, 
468  miles  long;  lacking  only  twenty-nine  miles  of  reaching 
from  Raton  to  El  Paso  over  the  Santa  Fe  tracks. 

From  the  Annual  Report  of  Jo  E.  Sheridan,  U.  S.  Coal 
Mine  Inspector,  for  1903,  the  production  of  New  Mexico  by 
counties  is  as  follows: 


Output  in 

Output  in 

tons   for 

tons  for 

Name  of  County. 

fiscal  year 
ending 

fiscal  year 
ending 

Increase 
in  tons. 

Decrease 
in  tons. 

June  30, 

June  30, 

1902. 

1903. 

Colfax  

264  364 

558,805 

294,441 

Lincoln  

121,902 

98,096 

23,800 

McKinley  

561.436 

539,910 

21,526 

Rio  Arriba  

50,600 

39JOO 

10.900 

Santa  Fe  

103,461 

92,359 

11,102 

Socorro  

29,681 

29,460 

221 

San  Juan 

1  500 

1  800 

300 

Total 

1  132  944 

1  359,530 

294,741 

67  549 

Deduct  decrease 

67  549 

Net  increase  .... 

227,192 

The  percentage  of  increase  of  the  year  1903  over  that  of 
1902  is  a  very  small  fraction  less  than  10  per  cent. 

Colfax  county  stands  first  in  production  and  has  a  coal 
area  almost  as  great  as  San  Juan  or  McKinley  county.  On 
account  of  the  coking  qualities  of  much  of  this  coal  it  ranks 
among  the  best  in  the  Territory.  The  output  of  this  county 
in  1903  is  seen  to  be  more  than  double  that  of  the  preced- 
ing year. 


214  NEW   MEXICO   MINES  AND   MINERALS. 

The  names  of  the  mines  operated  during  1903,  in  the  Ter- 
ritory by  counties  are  as  follows : 
Colfax  county— 

1.— Willow. 

2. — Dutchman. 

3. — Climax. 

4. — Sugarite. 

5. — Llewellyn. 

6.— Turner. 

7.— Dawson,  No.  1. 

8. — Dawson.  No.  2. 

9. — Dawson,  No.  3. 
Santa  Fe  county— 

1. — Cerrillos  bituminous. 

2. — Cerrillos  anthracite. 

3.— Anthracite  "B"  No.  33. 

4.— Block. 

5. — Pecos. 

6.— Una  de  Gato. 
Socorro  county— 

1.— Hilton 

2. — Government 

3.— -Bernal 

4. — Emerson 
San  Juan  county— 

1.— Thomas 

2. — Morgan 

3. — Stevens 
Lincoln  county— 

1.— Old  Abe 

2. — Capitan,  No.  1 

3.— Capitan,  No.  2 
McKinley  county— 

1.— Gallup 

2. — Weaver 

3. — Catalpa 

4.— Clark 

5. — Otero 

6.— Thatcher 

7.— Rocky  Cliff 


OF 

:iR£\J 

NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS.  215 

8. — Union 
9. — Black  Diamond 
10. — Casna 

11. — Gibson  (resumed  in  June,  1903). 
Rio  Arriba  county— 

1.— Monero,  No.  1 
2. — Monero,  No.  2 
3.— McBroom 
4.— Kutz 

Beside  the  regularly  operated  mines  there  are  numerous 
prospect  pits  in  several  of  the  counties,  which  supply  coal  in 
a  small  way,  and  are  not  classed  in  the  producing  list. 

The  coal  measures  of  New  Mexico  were  all  laid  down  during 
the  Cretaceous  period;  this  period,  perhaps,  will  include 
more  than  one-third  of  the  rock  surface  of  the  territory.  The 
formations  laid  dowTn  during  the  whole  of  Cretaceous  times, 
in  New  Mexico,  will  approximate  a  total  thickness  of  5,000 
feet.  The  most  important  series  of  this  great  rock  system, 
from  an  economical  standpoint  which  concerns  the  territory, 
are  the  later  or  uppermost  portions,  known  as  the  Fox  Hills 
group  of  the  Upper  Montana  and  the  Laramie  series. 

To  these  two  series  belong  the  entire  coal  measures  of  the 
territory.  It  now  seems  certain  that  the  Madrid  deposits* 
south  of  Cerrillos  and  the  Carthage  field  belong  to  the  Fox 
Hills  series,  which  horizon  is  immediately  below  the  Laramie. 
No  coal  has  yet  been  found  in  New  Mexico  belonging  to  the 
Carboniferous  period.  From  observations  by  the  wyriter 
there  are  a  number  of  deposits  in  the  territory  which  may  be 
proven  to  exist  in  the  Fox  Hills  horizon,  that  have  been  here- 
tofore considered  in  the  Laramie. 

The  extraordinary  condition  found  at  the  Madrid  field  is 
scarcely  paralleled  in  any  other  region  on  the  globe.  Here 
are  four  distinct  workable  veins  of  anthracite  which  are  the 
nearest  to  the  surface;  below  these  are  several  workable 
veins  of  bituminous  coal.  It  seems  that  these  conditions 
were  effected  by  intrusive  dikes  or  laccoliths  in  proximity  to 
the  coal.  Since  anthracite  is  nothing  more  than  metamor- 
phosed lignite  or  bituminous  coal,  it  is  always  expected  to 

*The  Geology  of  the  Cerrillos  Hills  bj  D.  W.  Johnson,  page  40. 


NKVV    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS. 


217 


lind  associated  intrusives  in  the  immediate  vicinity  of  such 
deposits  or  coking  coal. 

A  section  of  the  Madrid  fields  shows,  beside  the  four 
anthracite  veins,  twelve  others  which  may  be  eventually 
worked.  At  Gallup  there  are  from  four  to  five  veins  ranging 
in  thickness  from  three  feet  to  six  and  one-half  feet.  Similar 
conditions  exist  in  most  all  the  other  beds  in  the  territory. 

The  new  field  now  being  opened  up  at  Hagan  ( Una  de  Gato) 
in  southeastern  Sandoval  county,  by  the  New  Mexico  Fuel  and 
Iron  Company,  has  every  promise  of  being  one  of  the  best 
producing  districts  in  New  Mexico. 

New  coal  fields  and  mines  are  being  found  and  opened  up 
every  year.  Preparations  are  being  made  to  open  up  the 
Sloan  field  east  of  San  Felipe,  in  Sandoval  county;  this 
is  virtually  the  same  field  as  that  of  the  New  Mexico 
Fuel  and  Iron  Company.  Near  Gallina  postoffice  in  Rio 
Airiba  county,  a  new  field  has  been  recently  discovered  in 
1904  by  R.  W.  Tandy  and  W.  H.  Raymer. 

The  vast  coal  areas  in  western  Socorro  and  Valencia  coun- 
ties and  most  of  those  in  San  Juan  county  have  never  been 
touched.  Near  the  Ladrone  mountains  in  Socorro  county 
some  new  fields  have  lately  been  located  and  surveyed. 

The  following  table  shows  the  statistics  of  the  coal  mining 
industry  for  the  fiscal  year  ending  June  30,  1903,  taken  by 
counties: 


- 

Estimated 

Counties. 

Amount 
used    in 
operating- 
Mine. 

Net  p  r  o- 
duct. 

value  of 
net    pro- 
duct   for 
the  fiscal 
year  end- 
ing-  June 

County  per- 
-centage   of 
total   out- 
Kut  of  New 
lexico. 

30,  1903. 

Coif  ax  

10,753 

548.052 

645,213  70 

40  .  367 

Lincoln  

1,000 

97,096 

195,2-10.00 

7.217 

McKinley  

10,580 

529,330 

671.536  37 

39.712 

Rio  Arriba.           

1.000 

38,100 

58,000.00 

2.956 

Santa  Fe 

9  019 

83  340 

184  474  7;} 

6  793 

San  Juan  . 

1,800 

2.445.00 

.132 

Socorro  

375 

29,085 

38,319.00 

2.159 

Totals 

32  ~'>1 

1  326  803 

1,795  208  80 

99  336 

218 


NEW    MEXICO   MINES  AND   MINERALS. 


Production  of  coke  in  New  Mexico  for  the  fiscal  year  end- 
ing June  30,  1903.  (From  report  of  U.  S.  Coal  Mine  In- 
spector, Jo  E.  Sheridan). 


Name  of  oven 


*At  ovens  of  the  Dawson  Fuel 
Co.,  Dawson,  Coif  ax  county  ... 

fAt  ovens  of  the  Raton  Coal  and 
Coke  Company,  Gardiner,  Coif  ax 
county 


Total 


Number 
of  tons 


Estimated 
value  per 
ton  of 

2,000 
pounds 


18,074  $3.00 


26,353 


Value  o  f 
product  at 
the  ovens 


54,222.00 
20,697.50 

74,919.50 


*The  coal  from  which  this  coke  was  made  was?  mined  from  the  Dawson  mines. 
IThe  C0d,l  from  which  this  coke  was  made  was  mined  from  the  Wilson  mines,  owned 
by  the  Ratoii  Coal  and  Coke  Company. 

Analyses  of  New  Mexico  Coals. 

(Taken  principally  from  Jo  E.  Sheridan's  Report,  U.  S.  Coal  Mine  Inspector  ) 

McKinley   County. 

Analysis  of  coal  from  Catalpa  mine,   near  Gallup: 
(Owned  and  operated  by  American  Fuel  Company.) 

Moisture 6.66% 

Volatile  Matter 40. 13 

Fixed  carbon  45 . 56 

Ash 7.65 

Total 100.00% 

Analysis  of  coal  from  Weaver  mine,  at  Gibson,  near  Gallup: 

(Owned  and  operated  by  Colorado  Fuel  and  Iron  Company). 
No.  3  seam — 

Moisture 9 . 13  % 

Volatile  matter 38.45 

Fixed  carbon 49.43 

Ash 2.99 

Total 100.00% 

No.  5  seam — 

Moisture 8.23% 

Volatile  matter.  40.61 


NEW   MEXICO   MINES  AND   MINERALS.  219 

Fixed  carbon 45 . 17 

Ash 5.99 

Total 100.00$ 

The  Gallup  mine  is  being  operated  upon  the  same  coal 
seams  as  the  Weaver  mine,  viz,  No.  3  and  No.  5,  and  analyses 
are  similar  to  those  given  above  for  those  seams. 

Colfax  County. 

Analysis  of  coal  and  coke  produced  from  Raton  Coal  and 
Coke  Company's  mines  at  Raton: 

Coal  from  Raton  Coal  and  Coke  Company: 

Water 0.75$ 

Volatile  matter 34.40 

Fixed  carbon    56.93 

Mineral  ash 7 . 92 


Total 100.00$ 


Coke 64.85 

Character  of  coke,  very  strong  and 
tough;  color  of  ash,  very  light  ocher; 
character  of  ash,  soft  and  light. 

Sulphur  (as  sulphide) .016 

Sulphur  (as   sulphate ) 022 

Phosphorus 014 

Specific  gravity 1.291 

One  cubic  foot  weighs  in  pounds 88.690 

Analysis  of  Mineral  Ash: 

Silica 44. 

Alumina 39.28 

Oxide  of  iron 2.95 

Calcium  oxide.    7.41 

Magnesium  oxide 3 . 27 

Sulphate  of  calcium .41 

Alkalies  and  loss   .  2.52 


Total    100.00$ 

Analysis  of  coal  produced  from  Raton  Coal  and  Coke  Com 
pany's  "Willow"  mines  at  Van  Houten: 

Moisture 3.61$ 

Volatile  matter 35.55 

Fixed  carbon 51.73 

Sulphur     .63 

Ash 8  48 

Total..  100. 


220  NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS. 

Analysis  of  coal  produced  from  the  Raton  Coal  and  Coke 
Company's  "Dutchman"'  mine  at  Blossburg: 

M  oisture 1 . 28 % 

Volatile  matter 33.90 

Fixed  carbon 56 . 68 

Sulphur .65 

Ash 7.49 

Total... ...     100.00% 

Analysis  of  coal  from  the  Dawson  Fuel  Company's  mines  at 
Dawson : 

Moisture 1.32% 

Volatile  matter .  .    37 . 47 

Fixed  carbon 52.50 

Sulphur .21 

Ash 8.50 

Total 100.00% 

Santa  Fe  County. 

Analysis  of  coal  from  the  Cerrillos  bituminous  mine  of  the 
Colorado  Fuel  and  Iron  Company  at  Madrid  : 

(W.  D.  Church,  analyst,  December  2,  1893.) 

Water 2 . 00  % 

Volatile  matter 39.00 

Fixed  carbon 53 . 76 

Mineral  ash 5.24 

Total 100.00% 

Coke 59.00 

Character  of  coke,  strong  and  tough;  color  of  ash,  light  yel- 
lowish gray;  character  of  ash,  soft  and  light. 

Sulphur  (as  sulphide) 010 

Sulphur  (as  sulphate 022 

Phosphorus 006 

Specific  gravity 1 . 410 

1  cu.  ft.  weighs  in  Ibs 88 . 135 

Analysis  of  mineral  ash  : 

Silica 26. 

Alumina 32.41 

Oxide  of  iron 3.96 

Calcium  oxide. .  24.68 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS.  221 

Magnesium  oxide  ....................       10.32 

Calcium  sulphato    ...........  .......  .-1 

Alkalies  and  loss  .................         1.49 

Total    .........................  100.  00  # 

Analysis  of  Cerrillos  anthracite. 

(Analysis  furnished  by  the  Colorado  Fuel  and  Iron  Company.) 

Volatile  combustible  matter  .......  3.18^ 

Fixed  carbon  .....................  .  88.91 

Water  ......................    .......  2.70 

Ash  ..................................  5.21 

Sandoval  County. 

Analysis  of  coal  from  the  Ufia  de  Gato  mines,  operated  by 
the  New  Mexico  Fuel  and  Iron  Company  - 

(Jas.  O'Hardy.  analyst.  1902.) 

Moisture  ............................  6.25# 

Volatile  matter    ....................  40.40 

Fixed  carbon  .......................  47  .  56 

Ash  .................................  5.79 


Total  ........................     100. 

Sulphur..  ..............................  62 

Lincoln  County. 

Analysis  of  coal  from  the  New  Mexico  Fuel  Company's 
mines  at  Capitan  : 

Water  .............................  75tf 

Volatile  matter  .......    ..............       41.25 

Fixed  Carbon  .......................       47.00 

Ash  ...............................       11.00 

Total  ..........................     100.00$ 

Sulphur  .............................         .  735 

R.  C.  Hills,  the  geologist  of  the  Colorado  Fuel  and  Iron 
Company,  who  examined  the  property  of  the  New  Mexico 
Fuel  Company,  constructed  a  coke  oven  of  adobe  bricks  and 
coked  some  of  the  coal  from  the  Akers  seam,  which  gave  the 
following  analysis: 

Water    .........  .....................     1.450$ 

Volatile  matter  ......................  3.900 

Fixed  Carbon  ........................  76  825 

Ash  .................................  17.825 

Total  ..........................  100.  000  tf 

Sulphur  ..............................  611 


NEW    MEXICO   MINES  AND   MINERALS. 

Socorro  County. 

Analysis  of  coal  from  Hilton's  mine  at  Carthage: 
(Fayette  A.  Jones,  analyst,  March,  1902.) 

Moisture .06% 

Volatile  matter 37 .55 

Fixed  Carbon 54 . 88 

Ash 7.51 

Total 100.00% 

Sulphur .83 

Analysis  of  coal  from  the  Emerson  mine  at  Carthage: 

Moisture ]  .00% 

Volatile  matter 39.40 

Fixed  carbon 53 . 20 

Ash  6.40 

Total... JUO.00% 


CHAPTER  XXX. 


SALT. 

But  his  wife  looked  back  from  behind  him.  and  she  became  a  pillar  of  salt.    Genesis 
19:W. 

The  saline  lakes  of  New  Mexico  must  be  regarded  as  an 
important  factor  in  the  resources  of  mineral  wealth  of  the 
territory. 

These  saline  deposits  have  supplied  the  culinary  wants  of 
the  aborigines  throughout  this  part  of  the  southwest  from 
the  earliest  times. 

The  early  Spanish  explorers  when  enumerating  the  pro- 
ducts of  the  country  have  on  many  occasions  mentioned 
salt. 

There  can  be  little  doubt  about  these  saline  deposits  having 
played  an  important  part  as  a  food  savor  of  the  ancient  Pue- 
blos, centuries  before  the  discovery  of  America. 

Salt  may  properly  be  regarded  as  a  civilizer;  we  find  it  was 
extensively  used  by  the  Pueblo  Indians  of  the  southwest,  the 
ancient  Mexicans  and  Peruvians.  It  should  also  be  noted 
that  the  savages  of  the  western  plains,  and  cannibals  rarely 
ever  or  never  tasted  the  article.  The  docile  effect  which  salt 
has  on  wild  animals  is  well  known  to  all;  and  there  is  not  a 
civilized  people  today  who  do  not  use  the  article  in  quantity. 

Experiments  have  shown  that  a  solution  of  chloride  of 
sodium  stimulates  the  action  of  the  heart  and  apparently 
sustains  life;  this  may  account  for  the  fact  that  the  primordial 
types  of  life,  necessarily  appeared  first  in  the  sea.  The  use 
of  this  simple  substance  may  also  be  responsible  for  the 
increasing  longevity  of  the  human  race;  and  its  general 
absence  from  the  food  of  most  animals  would  explain  their 
shortness  of  life. 

Statistics  show  a  steady  increase  of  the  production  of  salt; 
the  United  States  now  stands  at  the  head  of  the  list  of  salt 
producing  nations.  The  output  of  the  United  States  in  1902 
was  23,849,221  barrels  of  280  pounds  each,  valued  at  $6,617,- 


in  o 


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NEW    MEXICO    MINKS    A XI)    MINERALS.  '2'2~) 

449.  Michigan  now  ranks  first  among  the  states  in  produc- 
tion, having  an  output  of  8,181,781  barrels  in  190:2. 

Up  to  the  present  time  this  territory  has  never  manufactured 
or  refined  salt  on  a  commercial  scale.  The  saline  lakes,  how- 
ever, furnish  a  large  amount  of  the  crude  product  which  is 
used  by  the  stockmen  for  salting  their  herds. 

This  salt  contains  many  impurities,  being  collected  by 
scraping  up  the  deposit  which  forms  in  a  thin  layer  over  the 
surface  of  the  lake  bottom,  during  the  dry  season. 

The  geology  of  the  saline  deposits,  in  New  Mexico,  is  the 
same  and  would  apply  in  a  general  way  to  like  deposits  that 
are  in  progress  of  formation  in  other  portions  of  the  globe. 

The  association  of  salt  with  gypsiferous  beds  is  discussed 
under  the  caption  of  Gypsum  Cement  Plaster.  As  there 
pointed  out,  both  gypsum  and  salt  are  closely  related  to  the 
"red  beds"  or  Permian  formation.  It  may  be  taken  as  a 
guide,  in  looking  for  deposits  of  salt  and  gypsum  in  New 
Mexico,  to  first  select  the  horizon  in  the  red  beds  series; 
then  at  or  near  their  base  or  some  associated  basin  prospect 
for  those  minerals. 

Having  determined  the  salt  and  gypsiferous  horizon  it  is 
an  easy  matter  to  account  for  the  saline  marshes  and  lakes 
with  their  attendant  deposits.  Saline  and  alkali  solutions 
collecting  in  impervious  basins  and  after  extreme  desiccation 
of  the  water,  will  deposit  their  solid  materials  when  the  point 
of  saturation  is  reached;  the  gypsum  is  always  precipitated 
first.  Big  Salt  Lake  of  Estancia  plain  with  its  adjacent 
basins  has  now  reached  the  period  of  excessive  old  age. 

What  now  remains  of  those  saline  basins  and  gypsiferous 
dunes,  is  nothing  more  than  the  lingering  of  another  White 
Sands  plain  and  is  only  a  little  farther  advanced  in  age. 

The  forces  of  the  winds  which  dug  those  saline  and  alkali 
graves  to  their  greatest  depth  (perhaps  60  feet  below  the 
uppermost  strata  of  the  ancient  lake  bed  of  Estancia  plain) 
are  now  at  work  rapidly  refilling  those  burial  pits  with  the 
same  material  that  it  excavated  ages  ago.  Should  this  de- 
posit not  be  wrested  from  the  encroaching  sands  of  the 
plains,  in  time  it  would  add  another  reserve  to  the  world's  in- 
exhaustible supply  of  hidden  treasure.  Thus  the  processes 


226  NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS. 

of  nature  are  continuous  and  ever  at  work;  renovating  the  old 
into  the  new  and  aging  the  new  from  the  mantle  of  the  past. 

The  saline  and  alkali  lakes  of  Estancia  plain  necessarily 
occupy  the  lowest  point  in  the  plain  which  lies  between  the 
Trinchera  Mesa  and  the  Manzano  Mountains. 

Big  Salt  Lake  is  the  only  one  of  this  group  that  produces 
salt  to  any  extent.  This  particular  lake  is  destined  to  play  a 
very  important  part,  in  the  near  future,  in  supplying  salt  to 
the  people  of  the  territory.  This  property  has  recently  passed 
into  the  hands  of  the  Pennsylvania  Development  Company 
and  is  within  a  few  miles  of  its  recently  constructed  rail- 
way, the  Santa  Fe  Central.  It  is  understood  that  a  plant  will 
be  erected  within  the  very  near  future  for  the  purpose  of 
refining  and  purifying  the  crude  salt. 

The  waters  from  these  lakes  are  saturated  with  salt  and 
other  soluble  matter  forming  a  very  strong  brine.  Dr.  C.  R. 
Keyes  had  a  gallon  of  water  from  the  Big  Salt  Lake  analyzed 
at  the  New  Mexico  School  of  Mines,  with  the  following 
result: 

Constituents.  Grains  per  Gal. 

Sodium  Chloride  (Common  Salt) 10,900 

Potassium  Sulphate 7,103 

Magnesium  Chloride 4.192 

Magnesium   Sulphate  3,004 

Alumina 64 

Silica 35 

Volatile  matter  4, 102 

It  is  seen  by  this  high  percentage  of  solid  matter  that  the 
water  is  almost  completely  saturated  and  on  standing  in  a 
vessel  for  a  few  hours  will  deposit  crystals  of  salt  on  the  sides 
and  bottom  of  the  vessel. 

Lying  in  the  soft  black  mud  which  covers  the  bottom  of 
the  lake  are  large  crystallized  chunks  of  the  mineral  bloedite 
— a  hydrous  double  sulphate  of  soda  and  magnesia — some 
pieces  of  which  will  weigh  several  hundred  pounds.  This  is 
at  present  the  only  place  in  the  United  States  where  this  rare 
mineral  is  known  to  exist. 

The  Salt  Lakes  of  the  "White  Sands"  plain  furnish  about 
the  same  geological  conditions  as  those  noticed  at  the  Estan- 
cia plain  lakes.  Nature  has  in  this  case  operated  on  a 
grander  scale  and  her  work  is  not  quite  so  far  advanced. 


NEW    MEXICO   MINES  AND   MINERALS.  227 

From  a  visit  to  this  curious  plain  it  was  found  that  a  saline 
horizon  consisting  of  the  red  beds  series,  almost  encircled  the 
basin.  Lying  near  or  at  the  foot  of  these  red  beds,  was  a  salt 
area  consisting  of  salt  flats,  lakes,  springs  and  marshe.s;  these 
saline  waters  and  deposits  lay  concentric  to  the  escribed 
series  of  the  red  beds.  The  central  portion  of  the  plain  is 
composed  principally  of  gypsum  dunes.  Near  the  south  end 
of  the  great  flow  of  basalt  (locally  known  as  the  mal  pais  and 
which  lies  in  the  lowest  part  of  the  plain  to  the  north),  is  a 
small  salt  lake  which  supplies  the  ranchmen  with  salt  in  that 
section  of  the  country.  Another  salt  lake  may  be  found  near 
the  southeast  side  of  the  White  Sands,  which  is  of  much  im- 
portance to  the  ranchers  for  miles  around. 

The  several  salt  lakes  in  the  "White  Sands"  basin  have  been 
patronized  for  centuries  by  the  aborigines. 

Dr.  C.  L.  Herrick  in  a  bulletin  of  the  University  Geological 
Survey  of  New  Mexico,  in  1900,  reports  the  following  analysis 
of  salt  from  this  region  :* 

Sodium  Chloride 90 . 83  % 

Sodium  Sulphate 1 . 57 

Calcium  Sulphate .65 

Potassium  Carbonate 1.25 

Magnesium  Chloride Trace 

Sandy  Impurities 5.70 

Total 100. 

Dr.  Herrick  also  reports  on  a  sample  of  brine  from  the 

"White  Sands"  region : 

Grains  per 
gallon. 

Sodium  Chloride 8.450 

Magnesium  Sulphate 316 

Calcium  Sulphate 465 

Sodium  Sulphate 452 

The  salt  flats  all  contain  sodium  and  potassium,  sulphates 
and  carbonates  and  some  magnesium  chloride,  as  well  as  a 
large  percentage  of  sodium  chloride. 

The  local  commercial  value  of  these  lakes  to  the  stockmen, 
as  a  source  of  supply  of  salt  for  their  herds,  is  inestimable. 

*Dr  C.  L,  Herrick  describes  the  "Geology  of  the  White  Sands"  in  the  Bulletin  of 
the  Hadley  Laboratory  of  the  University  of  New  Mexico,  Vol.  II,  Part  I.  Published 
in  the  year  1900. 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS.  229 

It  is  possible  that  these  deposits  may  be  worked  on  a  com- 
mercial scale  before  many  years  elapse. 

The  Zuni  Crater  salt  lake  in  western  Socorro  county  is  by 
far  the  most  interesting  of  any  of  the  sources  of  supply  of 
salt  in  New  Mexico. 

The  distance  across  the  main  depression  or  circular  basin, 
from  wall  to  wall,  at  the  crest,  is  one  and  one-fourth  miles. 
Standing  near  the  center  of  the  basin  are  two  basaltic  cinder 
cones,  perhaps  150  feet  in  height  each;  the  larger  cone  to  the 
southwest  has  its  conduit  still  open;  the  smaller  cone  to  the 
northeast  is  solid.  Evidently  from  the  nature  of  the  two 
cinder  cones,  the  upward  bulging  of  the  strata  and  from  the 
comparatively  little  massive  basalt  in  the  neighborhood,  the 
volcano  must  have  been  of  the  explosive  type,  which  burst 
through  the  Cretaceous  covering  apparently  instantaneously. 
The  ejecta  to  the  north  and  east,  consisting  mainly  of  a  com- 
minuted breccia  and  mud,  would  indicate  vu  lean  ism  in  pres- 
ence of  much  water.  The  cinder  cones  themselves,  with  the 
attending  travertine  at  the  base  of  the  conduit  cone  facing 
the  solid  cone,  would  go  to  substantiate  the  theory  that  it  was 
a  '-fight  to  the  finish"  between  fire  and  water. 

The  theory  of  the  saline  character  of  this  crater  lake  as 
advanced  by  Dr.  Her  rick,  that  the  open  conduit  extends 
downward  to  the  underlying  red  beds  series,  is  no  doubt 
correct;  since  the  red  beds  outcrop  just  to  the  north  and 
south  of  the  crater,  and  no  doubt  extend  under  the  Cretaceous 
rocks  which  embrace  the  crater  basin. 

The  Zuni  Indians  have  always  associated  this  crater  lake 
with  many  superstitions;  they  have  a  tradition  that  this  vol- 
canic crater  appeared  in  a  single  night.  Is  it  probable  that 
the  earliest  Zuni  Pueblos  witnessed  the  last  convulsions  of 
this  now  extinct  member  of  Vulcan?  The  ascending  waters 
in  the  crater  conduit  carrying  in  solution  the  saline  matter 
of  the  red  series,  diffuses  into  the  salt  lagoon  where  its 
burden  is  precipitated  at  the  bottom  of  the  lake.  The  salt  is 
shoveled  from  the  lake  into  small  flat  boats  by  Mexicans, 
after  which  it  is  pilled  up  on  the  bank  ready  for 
marketing.  This  lake  supplies  all  the  surrounding  ranches 
with  salt  within  a  radius  of  one  hundred  miles  or  more. 
Tae  quality  of  this  salt  is  the  best  in  the  territory.  Since 


230  NEW    MEXICO   MINES   AND    MINERALS. 

the  process  of  salt-making  is  continuous  at  Crater  Salt 
Lake,  no  fear  of  exhausting  the  supply  need  be  entertained. 

Should  the  feed  supply  of  the  lake  be  cut  off,  the  waters 
alone  in  the  lagoon  contain  approximately  500,000  tons  of  salt. 
Beside  the  salt  contained  in  the  brine,  several  strata  of  pure 
salt  varying  from  three  inches  to  a  foot  thick  are  reported  to 
exist  in  the  bottom  of  the  lagoon.  It  is  quite  probable  that 
some  of  the  lower  strata  of  salt  extend  entirely  around  the 
cinder  cones  and  spread  over  the  entire  floor  of  the  older 
lake  bed;  these  deposits  having  been  covered  by  silt  by  the 
gradual  filling  up  of  the  lake  basin.  In  all  probability  there 
are  several  millions  of  tons  of  salt  which  could  be  made  avail- 
able. No  analysis  of  the  lake  and  spring  waters  of  this  salt 
basin  has  ever  been  made,  although  the  writer  selected  a 
sample  from  the  Crater  Lake  for  analysis,  which  he  intended 
to  make  while  Director  of  the  New  Mexico  School  of  Mines, 
but  press  of  school  duties  prevented. 

The  above  saline  lakes  are  the  most  important  which  occur 
in  the  territory;  there  are  numerous  saline  flats  which  may 
eventually  yield  salt  after  their  proper  exploitation.  It  is 
learned  that  in  drilling  a  well  in  the  southwestern  part  of  the 
San  Augustine  plain,  near  the  fresh  water  holes,  below  Ful- 
lerton's  ranch  some  five  miles,  that  considerable  salt  water 
was  encountered,  which  stock  refused  to  drink,  and  the  well 
was  abondoned. 

East  of  the  Pecos,  in  Eddy  county,  are  valuable  saline 
lakes. 


CHAPTER  XXXI. 


CEMENT,   PLASTER  AND   LIME. 

Of  the  many  mineral  products  of  New  Mexico  that  have 
economical  value,  and  exist  in  unlimited  quantities,  are  the 
materials  from  which  cements,  plasters  and  lime  are  made. 

The  finished  products  manufactured  from  the  raw 
materials  will  ever  be  on  the  increase,  in  order  to  keep  pace 
with  the  growing  demands  and  needs  of  a  progressive  civili- 
zation. 

Owing  to  the  world's  supply  of  wood,  copper  and  iron  be- 
coming practically  exhausted  within  less  than  half  a  century, 
should  the  rate  of  demand  proportionately  increase  as  it  has 
done  during  the  last  half  century,  these  three  materials  will 
necessarily  be  largely  eliminated  from  present  uses  within  a 
few  years  on  account  of  increased  cost.  Therefore,  in  order 
that  equilibrium  be  restored,  the  uses  of  cement  materials 
will  evidently  increase  as  the  prices  of  wood  and  the  com- 
mercial metals  advance.  It  is  no  idle  dream,  and  the  future 
is  not  far  distant,  when  the  commodities  of  gypsum  from  the 
west  will  be  marketed  in  the  east.  The  increasing  popularity 
of  mission  architecture  in  the  west,  will  naturally  greatly  in- 
crease the  local  manufacture  of  a  good  cement  plaster,  which 
can  be  had  at  a  moderate  cost. 

Cement-concrete  ties  have  been  tried  on  the  Pere 
Marque tte  Railway,  and  also  on  the  Wabash  railroad,  with 
satisfactory  results. 

Cement  or  cement  block  houses  have  the  advantage  of  be- 
ing more  durable  than  wood,  as  well  as  being  fireproof  and 
excel  in  sanitation. 

Portland  Cement. 

Perhaps,  nothing  could  be  utilized  to  greater  advantage  or 
extent  of  New  Mexico's  natural  resources,  than  the  material 
from  which  cement  is  made. 

By  the  word  cement,  is  meant  that  kind,  in  particular,  hav- 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS. 

ing  hydraulicity*  properties — that  is,  having  the  power  tose 
or  harden  under  water. 

In  this  age  the  uses  of  cement  register  on  the  scale  of  pro- 
gress the  degree  of  advancement  attained  by  the  people  in 
any  particular  locality. 

Its  uses  are  so  diversified  in  all  the  important  and  economic 
works  of  engineering  and  architecture  that  it  is  destined,  in 
a  great  degree,  to  supersede  wood  and  iron.  It  possesses 
important  qualities  superior  to  both  those  of  wood  and  iron, 
since  it  will  neither  decay  nor  oxidize,  but  becomes  harder 
and  more  durable  with  age,  when  properly  prepared. 

It  is  a  remarkable  achievement  of  man  that  he  can  manu- 
facture within  a  few  hours  a  rock  more  durable  than  is  pos- 
sible for  nature  to  duplicate  in  millions  of  years. 

The  use  of  cement  of  some  types  antedates  history.  There 
are  samples  of  fairly  good  cement  mortar  in  the  pyramids,  in 
the  pavements  of  Pompeii  and  Herculaneum.  This  cement 
used  by  the  ancients  was  a  natural  product,  chiefly  volcanic 
ash  or  earth,  and  is  very  much  inferior  to  the  modern  ar- 
ticle. 

"Trass,"  a  volcanic  earth  is  found  in  some  parts  of  Holland 
on  the  Rhine,  and  in  certain  localities  of  New  Mexico.  Pozzuo- 
lana,  a  light  or  dark  colored,  porous  lava  or  ash  is  the  mate- 
rial from  which  the  Romans  made  their  cement.  Pozzuolana 
was  so  named  from  its  proximity  to  the  town  of  Pozzuoli, 
Italy,  which  is  situated  near  the  base  of  Vesuvius.  This 
Pozzuolana  was  the  first  substance  that  attracted  the  atten- 
tion of  modern  observers  on  account  of  it  possessing  the 
peculiar  property  of  hydraulicity.  Adobe  mud,  so  extensively 
used  throughout  the  southwest,  possesses  this  peculiar  prop- 
erty in  a  small  degree,  only. 

The  Latin  race  used  a  hydraulic  cement,  which  was  made 
from  Pozzuolana  with  perhaps  a  certain  admixture  of  clay 
and  lime;  and  it  appears  that  the  art  of  manufacture  was  lost 
during  the  dark  ages. 

This  cement  was  of  a  very  quick  setting  kind,  and  would 
solidify  in  a  mass  when  thrown  into  a  running  stream. 

Robert  Smeaton,  in  1756,  is  givin  the  credit  of  reviving  this 

*Hydraulicity  is  a  word  newly  coined  and  may  be  r  eflned  as  a  property  which 
certain  materials  possess  of  setting  or  hardening  under  water. 


NI']\V    MEXICO    MIXES    AND    MINERALS.  233 

lost  art;  the  product  made  by  him  was  supposed  to  be  identical 
to  that  made  by  the  ancient  Romans. 

Parker,  Wyatt  &  Co.  of  England,  were  the  first  to  take  out 
a  patent  on  artificial  cement;  this  was  in  the  year  1796. 

Vicat,  a  French  experimenter,  rirst  observed  and  noted  the 
principle  of  hydraulicity  in  the  year  IHIH. 

Portland  cement  was  made  from  the  natural  limestones  by 
Joseph  Aspdin  of  Leeds,  England,  in  1B24.  It,  howrever, 
remained  for  Pasley,  in  1823,  to  obtain  a  cement  by  the 
burning  of  river  mud  from  the  Medway,  which  was  im- 
pregnated writh  the  salts  of  sea  water  and  lime.  This  gen- 
tleman is  properly  the  true  founder  and  discoverer  of  the 
modern  Portland  cement. 

Good  Portland  cement  has  about  the  following  analysis: 

Lime  ...............................  (>1.00# 

Silica  ................................  23.50 

Alumina  .............................  8.00 

Iron  oxide  ...........................  3.00 

Magnesia    .........................  1.00 

Soda  and  potassa  oxides   ...........  1.25 

Sulphate  of  lime  .....................  2.--~> 


Total  ..........................      100.00'v 

Portland  cement  receives  its  name  from  its  similarity  of 
color  to  the  Portland  oolitic  lime  stone  of  Dorsetshire,  En- 
gland. 

The  stone  found  in  nature  from  which  the  original  Portland 
cement  was  made,  contains  about  21  per  cent  of  clay  and  79 
per  cent  of  lime-carbonate.  The  clay  is  composed  of  about 
one  part  of  alumina  to  two  parts  silica.  When  roasted  at  a 
high  temperature  for  a  considerable  length  of  time,  most  all 
the  alumina  and  silica  combines  with  a  part  of  the  lime;  the 
uncombined  lime  of  the  product  is  not  sufficient  to  cause  the 
same  to  slack  in  the  presence  of  water.  The  roasted  product 
is  reduced  to  a  powder  by  grinding. 

The  superiority  of  Portland  cement  over  that  of  other  kinds 
is  supposed  to  be  due  to  the  double  silicate  of  aluminum  and 
lime,  which  is  formed  only  at  a  high  temperature. 

The  density  of  cement  is  greatly  increased  by  long  con- 
tinued roasting,  which  materially  adds  to  the  strength  of  the 
product;  provided,  the  point  of  vitrification  is  not  reached. 


234  NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS. 

The  Roseadale  type  of  cemenfc  is  very  extensively  used  in  the 
United  States  and  is  manufactured  in  many  places,  viz:  Utica, 
111.,  Kansas  City,  Fort  Scott,  Kan.,  Milwaukee,  Trinidad, 
Colo.,  Louisville,  Ky.,  and  various  other  parts  of  the  country; 
it  is  made  from  an  argillo-magnesium  limestone.  The  stone 
is  quarried  and  then  crushed  to  a  suitable  size,  afterwards  it 
is  calcined  at  a  certain  t3mp3ratureand  then  ground  to  a  very 
fine  powder.  This  cement  is  rather  quick-setting  and  does 
not  have  the  strength  of  fie  slower-setting  kind,  of  which  the 
Portland  is  the  best  type. 

Rosendale  cement  is  frequently  termed  Roman  cement  or 
natural  cement  since  it  is  made  by  calcining  the  natural 
stones  which  contain  all  the  necessary  constituents  for  that 
class  of  cement. 

Rosendale  cement  was  tirst  manufactured  in  this  country 
in  1837;  but  Portland  cement  was  not  made  in  the  United 
States  until  1875. 

Pennsylvania  has  the  honor  of  constructing  the  first  Port- 
land cement  plant  in  the  United  States;  the  product  the  first 
year  was  1,700  barrels. 

Perhaps,  twenty-four  twenty-fifths  of  the  Portland  cement 
manufactured  in  England  and  the  United  States  is  now  made 
by  artificial  admixture  of  the  several  necessary  constituents. 

The  mass  is  roasted  at  the  proper  temperature  and  then 
ground  to  a  very  fine  powder.  This  powder  would  all  pass 
through  a  625-mesh  sieve  and  about  20  per  cent  should  be 
left  on  a  4,900-mesh  sieve;  this  degree  of  fineness  is  supposed 
to  give  the  best  results. 

The  large  and  numerous  beds  of  marls  found  in  various 
parts  of  the  Territory,  which  once  formed  the  bottoms  of 
ancient  lakes,  will  furnish  the  necessary  raw  material  for  the 
best  grade  of  Portland  cement. 

The  marl  beds  of  certain  portions  of  Estancia  plain,  along 
the  line  of  the  Santa  Pe  Central  Railway,  would  by  reason  of 
transportation  facilities  and  superior  quality  of  the  marls, 
make  an  ideal  place  for  the  establishment  of  a  hydraulic 
cement  industry. 

The  beds  of  cretaceous  shales  in  Colfax  county  at  Springer, 
make  a  splendid  cement;  a  plant  was  erected  at  that  point 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS.  235 

several  years  ago;  but,  from  some  unknown  reason,  was 
closed  down  indefinitely,  shortly  after  its  completion. 

This  important  product,  so  necessary  in  building  and  so 
extensively  used  in  all  engineering  and  architectural  works, 
is  used  but  comparatively  little  in  New  Mexico. 

The  finished  product  is  imported  into  the  Territory  at  a 
very  great  cost  which  largely  curtails  its  uses. 

Why  should  New  Mexico  people  be  like  the  early  Dutch  of 
New  York,  who  would  send  to  Holland  to  buy  brick,  when  the 
material  could  be  had  at  home? 

The  graphical  illustration  gives  a  clear  conception  of  the 
tremendous  growth  of  the  Portland  cement  trade  in  America 
since  1890.  The  figures  at  the  top  of  the  diagram  represent 
years  and  those  to  the  left  are  based  on  the  barrel  as  a  unit. 

Gypsum  Cement  Plaster. 

Gypsum  must  be  considered  as  a  coming  factor  in  the 
economic  distribution  of  the  mineral  wealth  of  New  Mexico. 

Its  uses  are  manifold  and  varied  in  character:  such  as 
cement  plaster  (which  has  fire-proof  qualities),  stucco,  dental 
plaster,  filler  in  paper,  fertilizer,  scagiola  finish  (an  imitation 
of  onyx  and  marble),  cement  paint,  plaster  of  Paris,  building 
blocks,  etc. 

The  virgin  deposits  of  this  useful  material  in  New  Mexico 
have  been,  as  yet,  practically  untouched.  These  beds  fre- 
quently attain  great  thicknesses  and  cover  large  areas. 

With  our  meager  knowledge  of  the  full  geological  distri- 
bution of  this  material  throughout  the  territory,  it  would  be 
absurd  at  the  present  time  to  attempt  to  estimate  its  extent 
or  quantity. 

Deposits  of  salt  are  always  associated  with  gypsum;  but,  a 
deposit  of  gypsum  does  not  necessarily  imply  that  it  is  as- 
sociated with  a  bed  of  salt.  The  reason  of  this  is  obvious, 
since  gypsum  is  the  first  substance  to  crystallize  out  of  a 
supersaturated  brine;  before  further  desiccation,  which 
would  be  necessary  for  the  deposition  of  salt,  the  water  from 
some  cause  would  become  fresh,  or  the  salt  already  deposited, 
would  again  pass  into  solution.  In  most  all  the  deposits  of 
gypsum  in  the  territory  where  the  beds  have  been  un- 


1,000,000 

500,000 

0 


Fig.  4O  -GRAPHICAL  DIAGRAM  OF  THE  CEMENT  INDUSTRY 
OF  THE  UNITED  STATES. 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS.  237 

disturbed,  the  stratifications,  due  to  water,  are  plainly  to  be 
be  seen. 

It  is,  therefore,  evident  that  in  most  instances  the  gypsum 
deposits  of  New  Mexico  were  laid  down  in  salt  water  lakes 
or  arms  of  the  sea  that  became  separated  from  the  main 
body  of  ocean  water.  It  further  appears,  that  all  of  the  ex- 
tensive beds  of  gypsum  of  the  territory  are  an  accompani- 
ment of  the  Permian  or  red  beds  formation.  Since  the  Per- 
mian epoch  was  one  of  general  unrest,  there  were  oscillations 
up  and  down  of  the  existing  land  areas  which  disconnected 
and  reconnected  successively,  arms  of  the  sea,  making  favor- 
able the  conditions  necessary  for  the  deposition  of  gyp- 
sum. 

The  gypsiferous  beds  in  most  places  show  that  such  move- 
ments have  taken  place;  for  strata  of  limestone  and  gypsum 
would  correspond  to  a  period  of  elevation  and  desiccation  of 
the  inland  lakes;  while  the  deposition  of  shales  and  sands 
would  correspond  to  the  time  of  downward  movement  and 
the  disturbing  force  of  rushing  waters  from  the  ocean.  This 
explanation  would  fully  account  for  the  various  stratas  of 
impurities  which  occur  in  the  gypsiferous  deposits  through- 
out the  southwest  and  elsewhere. 

There  are  some  deposits  of  gypsum,  in  New  Mexico,  where 
the  beds  do  not  have  a  stratified  appearance,  which  would 
indicate  a  different  mode  of  deposit.  An  example  of  such 
deposits  may  be  found  at  the  Jones'  iron  mines  in  the  eastern 
part  of  Socorro  county  at  the  north  end  of  the  Sierra  Oscura, 
near  the  mine  cabin.  Some  of  those  beds  are  very  white  and 
are  good  examples  of  alabaster,  having  a  fine  granular  texture. 
Their  occurrence,  in  part,  at  least,  would  appear  to  be  due  to 
the  oxidation  of  pyrites  which  is  associated  with  the  monzonite 
dike  that  ruptured  the  Carboniferous  limestones. 

The  oxidation  of  the  sulphur  would  produce  sulphuric  acid 
and  this  in  turn  would  attack  the  contiguous  limestones, 
thereby  forming  gypsum.  Owing  to  the  enormous  beds  of 
gypsum  at  this  place,  this  theory  should  be  excluded  from 
consideration,  unless  we  would  suppose  the  entire  bodies  of 
massive  iron  ore,  were  at  one  time  the  sulphides  of  iron.  The 
bedded  structure  of  the  iron  deposits  would  scarcely  admit 
such  a  conclusion. 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS.  239 

The  protruding  of  this  enormous  molten  or  plastic  mass 
was  evidently  attended  by  much  chemical  activity. 

Sulphuric  acid  vapor  would  naturally  be  an  accompaniment 
of  these  igneous  disturbances  and  would  readily  attack  the 
overlying  limestones  which  were  pushed  upward  from  their 
beds  and  much  shattered  by  the  protruding  dike. 

The  checking  of  the  limestone  more  fittingly  prepared  it 
for  the  assault  and  action  of  the  sulphuric  acid  vapors;  which 
resulted  in  forming  those  agglomerated  beds  of  gypsum. 

The  reaction  of  sulphuric  acid  acting  on  limestone  in  the 
presence  of  water  can  be  best  shown  by  the  chemical  equa- 
tion: 


Since  the  carbonic  acid  is  not  a  stable  compound  it  breaks 
down  into  carbon  dioxide  and  water. 
Therefore, 


This  gives  in  the  last  member  of  the  equation,  Gypsum 
(CaSOi+SH-jO),  with  its  water  of  crystallization  and  liberates 
the  carbon  dioxide  (CO-j)  gas. 

The  deposits  lie  on  either  side  of  the  monzonite  dike  and, 
perhaps,  more  than  three-fourths  of  the  original  beds  have 
been  removed  by  the  actions  of  wind  and  water. 

Doubtless,  there  are  a  number  of  other  deposits  of  gypsum 
in  the  Territory  which  have  been  formed  under  similar 
igneous  and  volcanic  conditions,  as  well  as  by  the  action  of 
acidulated  waters  of  thermal  springs  on  calcareous  tuffs  and 
tufas.  However,  the  point  should  not  be  overlooked,  that  the 
principal  number  and  most  extensive  deposits  of  gypsum 
which  occur  in  New  Mexico  owe  their  origin  to  the  desiccation 
of  salt  water  lakes  and  bays  which  were  formed  inland  or 
were  cut  off  from  the  sea. 

A  geological  cross-section  of  the  extensive  gypsum  beds  of 
the  Rock  Island  Cement  and  Plaster  Company  at  Ancho, 
Lincoln  county,  is  here  given. 

These  beds  are  of  enormous  areal  extent  and  are  of  great 
thickness.  A  well  was  bored  for  water  by  the  El  Paso  and 
Northeastern  Railway  Company  on  the  west  side  of  its 
tracks  at  Ancho.  The  well  was  sunk  to  a  depth  of  over  four 


OF 


240  NEW    MEXICO    MIXES   AND   MINERALS. 

hundred  feet  and  was  abandoned  as  no  water  was  found.  It 
is  said  that  the  boring  was  in  a  gypsiferous  formation  the 
greater  portion  of  the  depth. 

These  deposits  are  of  special  importance,  since  a  plant  of 
one  hundred  tons  capacity  has-  recently  been  installed  and 
fine  products  of  stucco,  cement,  cement  plaster,  plaster  of 
Paris  and  dental  plaster  are  made. 

The  gypsum  occurs  in  two  forms,  locally  known  as  gypsite 
and  alabaster.  The  gypsite  is  a  gray  or  yellowish  deposit 
containing  a  moderately  low  per  cent  of  silica  with  some  or- 
ganic impurities.  The  massive  alabaster  variety  lies  in  strat- 
ified beds  dipping  about  thirty  degrees  toward  the  west  and 
has  a  whitish  gray  appearance  with  some  small  dark  streaks 
or  zones  running  through  it;  these  dark  streaks  are  principal- 
ly organic  impurities,  which  disappear  on  calcination. 

The  gypsite  has  the  appearance  of  a  re-deposit  which  has 
come  from  the  erosion  of  the  original  gypsiferous  beds  above. 

The  analysis  of  this  gypsite,  which  was  made  by  M.  Carle- 
ton  Ellis,  S.  B.,  of  Boston,  who  is  a  specialist  on  plasters  and 
cement,  is  here  given: 

Sulphate  of  lime 63.95$ 

Carbonate  of  lime 20 . 04 

Silica 3.57 

Oxides  of  iron  and  aluminum  2.01 

Magnesia .89 

Chlorine .09 

Moisture 9.45 

Total 100.00$ 

Brown  cement  plaster  is  made  from  this  kind  of  material. 

The  Rock  Island  Cement  and  Plaster  Company,  manufac- 
tures cement  plasters  of  various  shades  of  color;  such  as 
chocolate,  brown,  light  yellow,  reddish  brown,  gray  and 
white. 

The  gypsite  from  which  the  cement  plaster  is  made,  comes 
from  a  gypsiferous  bed  which  is  apparently  a  re-deposit;  not 
being  nearly  so  pure  as  the  solid  beds  of  alabaster. 

The  finer  grades  of  plaster,  such  as  plaster  of  Paris,  stucco 
and  dental  plaster,  are  made  from  the  alabaster  deposit. 

This  stucco  is  scarcely  excelled  by  any  like  product  in  the 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS.  241 

world;  it  is  a  close  rival  in  quality  to  the  celebrated  Nova 
Scotia  article. 

Some  of  the  dental  plasters  and  stuccos  will  set  in  less  time 
than  three  minutes;  on  account  of  this  rapidity  in  setting  a 
retarder  is  usually  introduced. 

The  technology  of  preparing  the  various  plaster  cement 
products  is  simple,  though  much  experience  and  judgment 
is  required.  The  solid  raw  material  is  crushed  in  a  jaw- 
crushing  machine,  similar  to  an  ordinary  ore  crusher. 

From  the  crusher  the  fragments  fall  into  a  rotary  grinder, 
something  on  the  order  of  a  coffee  mill,  where  the  product  is 
still  further  reduced  in  size.  A  bucket  elevator  lifts  these 
small  particles  to  a  point  where  the  same  is  fed  from  a  spout 
into  an  ordinary  buhr  stone  mill,  where  the  material  is 
reduced  to  a  very  fine  powder.  This  floured  gypsum,  after 
its  exit  from  the  buhr  mill,  is  passed  into  a  second  elevator 
and  hoisted  to  a  bin  over  the  calcining  kettles.  Prom  this 
bin  the  fine  gypsum  is  run  slowly  into  the  kettles.  The 
temperature  of  the  kettles  is  kept  at  212°  F.  or  100°  C.  The 
gypsum  is  constantly  stirred  by  means  of  revolving  paddles 
or  arms,  which  keeps  the  material  from  caking  and  burning 
at  the  bottom. 

In  an  hour  or  so  the  water  has  been  driven  off,  the  tempera- 
ture is  gradually  raised  to  about  285°  F.  or  140°  C.  The 
product  is  hoisted  to  the  upper  story  of  the  mill  by  a  bucket 
elevator  and  is  there  bolted  in  a  revolving  screen  similar  to 
that  used  in  a  flouring  mill.  After  the  bolting  operation,  the 
process  is  complete. 

The  operation  of  treating  the  gypsite  or  cement  plaster  is 
somewhat  curtailed  from  that  of  the  process  of  preparing  the 
finer  grades  of  the  white  product;  inasmuch,  as  the  coarse 
crushing  and  bolting  processes  are  not  required. 

The  most  delicate  part  of  the  process  in  cement  plaster 
manufacture  is  in  regulating  or  obtaining  the  correct  tem- 
perature during  the  operation  of  calcining;  such  skill  can 
only  be  acquired  by  practice.  A  trained  calciner,  can  tell 
from  the  appearance  of  the  material  the  proper  degree  of 
heat,  independent  of  the  reading  of  the  thermometer.  Dif- 
ferent products  in  cement  plaster  manufacture,  require 
different  degrees  of  heat  during  the  calcination  process. 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS.  243 

If  gypsum  is  over-burnt,  heated  over  204°  C.,  its  property 
of  hardening  with  water  is  destroyed;  the  cause  is,  perhaps, 
from  it  having  been  converted  into  anhydrite,  which  does 
not  re-form  with  water. 

The  plant  of  the  Rock  Island  Cement  and  Plaster  Company 
was  begun  in  September,  1902,  and  completed  in  the  follow- 
ing spring. 

Only  one  calcining  kettle  was  placed  in  position  at  that 
time  and  operated  during  the  summer  of  1902.  The  business 
has  justified  the  installation  of  another  kettle,  the  same 
capacity  as  the  first,  increasing  the  output  to  one  hundred 
tons  per  twenty  four  hours.  This  plant  is  similar  in  con- 
struction to  many  of  those  in  Kansas. 

Before  leaving  this  subject  it  would  seem  proper  here,  in 
addition  to  the  brief  mention  made  of  the  plain  of  the  "white 
sands"  in  the  chapter  on  salt,  to  add  a  few  more  words  about 
this  marvelous  gypsum  deposit. 

Indeed,  the  plain  of  the  white  sands  may  well  be  spoken  of 
as  one  of  the  greatest  wonders  in  the  southwest.  When 
viewed  from  the  adjacent  mountain  tops,  the  unsuspecting 
person  easily  mistakes  the  expanse  of  the  snowy  field  for 
water.  This  gypsiferous  sea  is  about  thirty  five  miles  in  ex- 
tent north  and  south,  and  the  greatest  breadth  at  its  south- 
ern extremity  is  approximately  eighteen  miles;  the  area  is 
somewhat  triangular  in  shape  and  embraces  nearly  350 
square  miles. 

Restless  as  the  ocean  waves  are  the  ever  shifting  sands  of 
this  snowy  waste;  dunes  are  formed  here  to  day  and  depres- 
sions take  their  place  on  the  morrow. 

An  analysis  of  the  sands  made  by  the  New  Mexico  College 
of  Agriculture  and  Mechanic  Arts,  gives  the  following  re- 
sults: 

Calcium  sulphate  (gypsum) 

Calcium  carbonate 

Magnesium    sulphate 

Magnesium  carbonate 

Potassium   sulphate 

Sodium  carbonate 

Sodium  chloride 

Total 99.31% 


244  NEW   MEXICO   MINES  AND   MINERALS. 

The  water  of  crystallization  is  included  in  the  calcium  sul- 
phate. 

A  concern  in  Alamogordo  is  hauling  these  sands  to  that 
town,  where  it  is  manufactured  into  a  cement  plaster,  similar 
to  that  made  at  Ancho. 

Slag  Cement. 

Slag  cement  is  made  as  a  by-product  from  the  basic  slags 
of  iron  furnaces  and  is  a  comparatively  recent  industry. 
There  are  now  several  slag  cement  plants  in  operation  in 
Pennsylvania;  the  industry  is  growing  quite  rapidly. 

The  composition  of  slag  suitable  for  the  manufacture  of  this 
kind  of  cement,  is  about  the  following  average  composition : 

Silica 32.72% 

Alumina 12.95 

Iron 2.51 

Lime 47.67 

Magnesia 2.71 

Sulphur 1.44% 

Total 100.00 

In  the  preparation  of  slag  cement  the  material  is  coarsely 
crushed  after  drying,  after  which  a  certain  amount  of  slacked 
lime  is  added;  the  whole  is  then  thoroughly  mixed  and  then 
reduced  in  tube  mills. 

The  finished  product  has  the  following  average  composition: 

Silica 21.33% 

Alumina 11.61 

Iron 2.4:i 

Lime 55.83 

Magnesia 1 . 93 

Sulphur .87 

Total 100.00% 

Slag  cement  is  called  Pozzuolana  by  some  in  order  to  dis- 
tinguish it  from  the  Portland  cement  or  other  types.  This 
type  of  cement  is  of  fairly  good  quality,  approaching  that  of 
Portland  cement,  which  it  resembles;  the  color,  however, 
being  of  a  lighter  shade. 

On  account  of  the  scarcity  of  suitable  gypsiferous  deposits 
in  many  of  the  eastern  states,  slag  cement  is  used  to  aid  in 
supplying  the  breach  caused  by  such  deficit. 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS.  245 

The  immense  deposits  of  gypsum  in  the  west  will  preclude 
the  manufacture  of  slag  cements  from  that  section  of  the 
country,  for  some  time  to  come. 

Lime. 

Much  of  the  lime  used  in  New  Mexico,  up  to  a  very  recent 
date,  was  shipped  into  the  territory  from  Texas,  Colorado 
and  Kansas;  this,  however,  was  not  for  lack  of  lime-making 
materials  in  the  territory. 

Lime,  the  principal  constituent  of  ordinary  plaster,  is  made 
by  the  burning  or  heating  of  limestone. 

Any  carbonate  of  lime,  such  as  bones,  marble,  Iceland  spar, 
aragonite,  shells  of  mollusks  and  chalk,  when  sufficiently 
burned,  form  lime. 

Both  the  chemistry  and  technology  of  the  process  of  lime 
making  is  simple  and  does  not  require  the  careful  experience 
as  in  the  manufacture  of  cement.  Two  things  are  requisite: 
the  proper  kind  of  limestone  and  that  the  same  be  burned 
sufficiently  long  at  a  high  temperature.  There  is  always 
more  danger  of  under  burning  than  over  burning. 

The  object  of  burning  is  simply  to  drive  off  the  carbon  di- 
oxide; the  product  left  in  the  kiln  is  caustic  lime. 

The  chemical  equation,  in  presence  of  heat,  is: 

CaC03=CaO+C02 

which  expresses  the  change. 

The  new  product,  caustic  lime  (CaO),  has  great  affininity 
for  water. 

The  chemistry  of  the  milk  of  lime — the  product  run  off 
into  mortar  boxes,  when  water  is  added  to  the  quick  or  caustic 
lime — is  shown  in  the  following  reaction  with  the  evolution  of 
heat: 

CaO+HsO=Ca(OH)a 

The  right  hand  member  is  milk  or  hydrate  of  lime  or  lime 
putty,  and  belongs  to  a  group  known  in  chemistry  as  hydroxide. 

The  blue  or  black  limestones,  which  are  very  free  from 
silica,  usually  make  the  best  lime. 

Mr.  Charles  Kempe  of  Tijeras,  about  twenty  miles  east  of 
Albuquerque,  is  the  largest  producer  of  lime,  in  New  Mexico. 
The  capacity  per  week  of  his  kilns,  is  about  seven  hundred 


246  NEW    MEXICO   MINES   AND   MINERALS. 

bushels.  The  lime  is  made  from  a  black  limestone  in  the  im- 
mediate vicinity,  and  is  said  to  be  ordinary  in  quality. 
About  two  miles  further  up  the  canyon  is  another  kiln,  work- 
ed by  some  natives;  the  finished  product  is  about  the  same  as 
that  of  Mr.  Kempe's,  but  the  output  is  not  nearly  so  great. 

A  very  fine  quality  of  lime  was  formerly  made  at  a  point 
called  Fraley,  about  eight  miles  east  of  San  Antonio,  at  the 
northwest  edge  of  the  Carthage  coal  field.  These  were  the 
largest  kilns  ever  operated  in  New  Mexico.  When  the  branch 
track  of  the  A.,  T.  &  S.  F.  Railway  was  removed  a  few  years 
ago,  operations  were  suspended. 

At  Las  Vegas,  near  the  Hot  Springs,  some  large  kilns  are 
operated  by  Mr.  Fritz.  The  production  is  considerable  and 
the  grade  of  lime  is  excellent.  A  good  quality  of  lime  is  made 
from  two  kilns  at  Farmington.  In  fact  all  the  principal  towns 
of  New  Mexico  such  as  Silver  City,  Raton,  Roswell,  Las  Cru- 
ces  and  Alamogordo,  usually  burn  their  own  supply  of  lime 
in  the  immediate  vicinity. 

The  mode  of  mixing  and  preparing  ordinary  lime  mortar 
and  its  general  uses  are  so  familiar  to  all  that  any  remarks 
covering  those  points  would  be  superfluous. 


CHAPTER  XXXII. 


CLAY,  BRICK  AND  STONE. 

Nature  seems  to  have  abundantly  endowed  New  Mexico 
with  all  that  could  be  desired  in  the  economics  of  building 
materials  and  ornamental  stones. 

Nothing  definite  has  yet  been  done  toward  determining  the 
extent,  qualities  and  localities  of  these  materials.  The  time 
for  their  full  exploitation  is  still  a  matter  for  the  future  to 
determine.  Present  and  past  demands  for  such  material 
have  usually  been  supplied  in  the  immediate  vicinity  where 
such  needs  have  arisen.  It  is  evident  from  the  most  cursory 
examination  of  the  various  fields,  which  have,  as  yet,  been 
but  little  explored,  that  this  Territory  is  amply  provided  with 
everything  required  in  the  line  of  the  raw  building  materials. 

Clay  and  Brick. 

Very  little  concerning  the  clays  of  New  Mexico  is  known. 
No  detailed  analyses  of  the  various  deposits  have  ever  been 
made  and  our  present  knowledge  of  the  character  and  extent 
of  the  beds  is  only  fragmentary. 

Clay  may  be  defined  as  the  silicate  of  aluminum  and  most 
always  contains  water  in  appreciable  quantities. 

Its  origin  is  due  to  the  decomposition  of  feldspathic  rocks 
from  which  the  oxides  of  potash  and  soda  have  been  generally 
removed  by  meteoric  and  other  agencies. 

Kaolinite  is  the  purest  type  of  clay  from  which  porcelain 
and  the  finest  chinaware  is  made.  The  best  grade  of  kaolin 
comes  from  near  Janchau  Pu,  China.  Germany  and  some 
other  countries  have  almost  as  good  an  article  as  that  found 
in  China.  The  different  types  of  clay  are  very  numerous; 
passing  as  they  do  by  insensible  gradations  from  one  to 
another,  it  is  very  difficult  to  draw  any  sharp  line  of  demark- 
ation,  relative  to  their  classification,  only  in  a  general  way. 

Chemical  analyses  and  practical  tests  as  to  their  commer- 
cial qualities,  afford  the  chief  basis  in  determining  their 
fitness  for  use. 

That  splendid  clays,  necessary  in  the  ceramic  arts,   for 


248  •        NEW    MEXICO    MINES  AND   MINERALS. 

bricks  and  other  purposes,  exist  in  the  Territory,  no  one 
questions. 

The  aborigines  were  the  first  to  utilize  the  clay  products  of 
New  Mexico,  as  evidenced  by  their  many  peculiar  wares  in 
water  jars,  vases  and  baked  images.  Their  beautiful  coiled 
and  decorated  pottery  have  been  much  admired  and  com- 
mented on  by  archaeologists  and  curio  collectors. 

The  more  important  uses  of  New  Mexico  clays,  aside  from 
pottery,  when  viewed  from  a  commercial  standpoint,  would 
be  in  the  manufacture  of  the  various  classes  of  bricks,  terra- 
cotta, tiles,  and  sewer-pipe.  Of  these  articles  enumerated, 
none  are  manufactured  in  the  territory  excepting  brick. 

The  clay  bearing  formation  of  New  Mexico  may  be  classed 
into  four  general  groups,  viz: 

(1)  Carboniferous  clays. 

(2)  Jura-Trias  and  Cretaceous  clays. 

(3)  Tertiary  clays. 

(4)  Loess  and  alluvial  deposits. 

From  the  foregoing  division  it  is  seen  that  the  clay  and 
shale  formations  suitable  for  manufacturing  purposes,  exist 
in  all  the  principal  geological  divisions,  from  the  Carbon- 
iferous up  to  the  river  loess  and  alluvial. 

Under  the  first  division,  both  above  and  below  the  carbon- 
aceous shales,  which  correspond  to  the  eastern  coal  measures 
are  found  shales  and  clays  which  could  be  utilized  in  the 
manufacture  of  terra-cotta  and  brick.  On  the  east  side  of 
the  river  at  Socorro,  clays  supposed  to  belong  to  this  age, 
have  been  extensively  used  at  the  Socorro  Brick  plant,  mak- 
ing a  good  fire  brick,  due  to  their  refractory  qualities. 
Similarly,  in  the  Lemitar  mountains,  much  material  belong- 
ing to  the  Carboniferous  was  used  at  the  same  plant.  So  far 
as  known,  these  two  places  embrace  the  only  points  in  the 
territory  where  clays  of  this  age  have  been  utilized. 

In  the  second  division,  many  clays  and  shales  of  beautiful 
bright  colors  may  be  found  throughout  New  Mexico.  Of 
course  care  should  be  used  to  avoid  any  of  the  highly  gyp- 
siferous  clays  and  shales  of  the  red  series.  Above  and 
below  many  of  the  coal  veins  of  the  Cretaceous,  fire  clay  of 
very  excellent  quality  exists. 

This  clay,  which  is  associated  with  the  coal  beds  has  never 
been  utilized,  excepting  only  sparingly  at  Gallup. 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES    AND   MINERALS.  249 

At  Las  Vegas  a  splendid  brick  is  made  from  the  dark 
Cretaceous  shales;  this  however,  is  not  directly  connected 
with  the  coal  bearing  series. 

Nowhere  in  the  territory  have  the  Jura-Trias  clays  been 
touched. 

Of  the  clays  in  the  third  division  only  one,  to  the  writer's 
knowledge,  has  ever  been  worked;  it  lies  near  Escondido, 
north  of  Socorro.  This  deposit  is  a  whitish-gray  color  and 
makes  a  good  refractory  brick.  It  was  in  this  marl-bed,  the 
writer  picked  up  several  fragments  of  the  bones,  and  some 
fairly  well  preserved  teeth  of  the  Tertiary  horse— presum- 
ably, equus  excelsus.  These  fragments  are  now  in  the 
museum  of  the  New  Mexico  School  of  Mines. 

The  bones  of  this  primitive  equine  were  excavated  some 
twenty  feet  below  the  surface  and  were  scattered  promis- 
cuously about  by  the  Mexican  workmen  and  only  by  chance 
were  any  of  the  crumbling  remains  saved. 

Near  the  mouth  of  Blue  canyon  in  Socorro  mountain,  beds 
of  kaolin  exist  which  have,  also,  been  worked  by  the  Socorro 
brick  plant.  The  age  of  these  deposits  is  in  doubt;  though 
the  disturbances  rendering  possible  the  condition  of  the 
kaolinization  of  the  andesite,  must  have  taken  place  during 
the  earliest  Tertiary  times. 

Division  four  is  the  most  important  source,  commercially, 
of  New  Mexico's  clays;  it  is  from  the  river  loess  and  alluvial 
deposits  that  most  all  of  the  bricks  of  the  territory  are  made. 
Since  the  greater  portion  of  the  population  is  confined  to  the 
river  valleys,  it  is  cheaper  to  take  advantage  of  the  river 
deposits  in  the  manufacture  of  bricks,  than  have  the  material 
brought  from  a  distance. 

This  would  account  for  most  of  the  bricks  being  made  from 
these  clays,  since  the  element  of  quality  is  not  such  a  con- 
sideration as  cheapness  in  manufacture. 

Were  quality  only  to  be  considered  a  factor,  valley  bricks 
would  be  relegated  to  the  rear,  on  account  of  their  inferiority 
in  strength. 

Mr.  J.  S.  Macgregor  of  the  Department  of  Mechanical  En- 
gineering in  the  New  Mexico  College  of  Agriculture  and 
Mechanic  Arts  at  Mesilla  Park,  kindly  furnished  me  with  the 
data  on  the  crushing  strength  and  absorption  power  of  bricks 
coming  from  the  Mesilla  valley,  Albuquerque  and  Las  Vegas: 


250 


NEW    MEXICO   MINES   AND   MINERALS. 


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NEW    MEXICO   MINES   AND   MINERALS.  251 

By  an  inspection  of:  Table  I,  it  is  seen  that  the  machine- 
made  brick  gives  a  much  higher  crushing  strength  than  the 
hand-made;  and  the  buff-colored  bricks,  at  both  Las  Vegas 
and  Albuquerque  give  the  highest  crushing  tests  of  all. 

Also,  the  absorption  power  of  these  two  varieties  does  not 
vary  a  great  deal  in  proportion  to  their  respective  densities. 
Hand-made  bricks  usually  have  the  greatest  absorption  and 
consequently  show  the  lowest  crushing  strength;  in  the 
tables,  No.  4  of  the  Las  Vegas  bricks  seem  to  be  an  exception 
to  the  latter  statement. 

The  only  paving  brick  made  at  present  in  New  Mexico,  is 
by  convict  labor  at  the  territorial  penitentiary,  Santa  Fe. 

Much  of  this  material  is  being  laid  in  walks  and  paving 
which  may  be  seen  about  the  Capitol  at  Santa  Pe,  in  the  City 
of  Santa  Pe,  in  Albuquerque,  Las  Vegas  and  other  places. 
This  vitrified  brick  is  of  superior  quality  and  finish;  the  clay 
comes  from  a  deposit  not  far  from  the  penitentiary. 

All  of  the  principal  towns  of  the  territory  engage  in  the 
manufacture  of  brick  for  their  own  use;  the  alluvial  and  loess 
clays  which  arc  near  at  hand  naturally  receive  the  greatest 
favor. 

In  order  to  meet  the  demand  for  a  cheap  strong  building 
material,  sand-lime  brick  will  likely  become  a  new  feature  in 
New  Mexico  soon.  A  company  is  now  being  formed  in  Albu- 
querque to  erect  such  a  plant  at  an  early  date.  The  sand  on 
the  river  makes  this  enterprise  possible,  since  it  is  convenient 
and  exists  in  practically  unlimited  quantities.  The  process 
is  steaming  and  compressing;  silicate  of  lime  furnishing  the 
bond.  This  brick  will  withstand  an  enormous  pressure,  is 
very  compact  and  durable.  Coloring  matter  maybe  intro- 
duced to  give  various  shades  of  color. 

The  New  Mexico  Stone  Manufacturing  Company  of  Albu- 
querque, began  making  cement  brick  or  rather  blocks  in  the 
spring  of  1904,  and  is  meeting  with  marked  success. 

The  following  are  a  few  analyses  of  clays  from  various  parts 
of  the  country  which  may  be  used  for  comparison,  viz: 

Kaolin  (China  clay)  3H2O.  2AliOg.  4SiO2 . 
( Dana's  Mineralogy ) 

Silica 48.0$ 

Alumina   .  41.2 


252  NEW    MEXICO   MINES   AND   MINERALS. 

Water 10.8 

Total 100.00$ 

Kaolin  from  Red  Mountain,  Colorado: 
(Dana's  Mineralogy) 

Silica 45.57$ 

Alumina 41.52 

Water 13.58 

Total 100.67$ 

Crucible  clay,  Denver  Fire-Clay  Co.,  from   Golden,   Colo- 
rado: 

(U.  S.  Geological  Survey) 

Silica 71.81$ 

Alumina 15.09 

Ferrous   oxide 1.75 

Lime : .14 

Magnesia .05 

Alkalies 1.02 

Water 10.14 

Total 100.00$ 

The  total  fluxes  in  this  clay  are  2.96%. 

Cretaceous  clay  from  near  Capitan,  New  Mexico: 
(Analysis  by  Hughes  &  Crickett,  El  Paso,  Tex. ) 

Silica 58.4$ 

Aluminum 18.7 

Iron  Oxide 2.5 

Lime 6.0 

Magnesia trace 

Water .  10.2 


Total ','.' 95.8$ 

The  deficit  is,  perhaps,  all  carbon  dioxide. 

East  Slope  of  Sandia  Mountains,  Cretaceous  Clay: 
(Analyst,  F.  C.  Lincoln,  N.  M.  School  of  Mines.) 

Silica 65.54$ 

Alumina 25.76 

Lime trace 

Magnesia trace 

Water ....         6.70 

Organic  Matter 1.36 

Undetermined  (alkalies,  etc. ) .64 

Total 100.00$ 

This  is  strictly  a  refractory  clay,  since  it     is  free   from  any  fluxes, 
whatever. 

Acequia  Clay,  Old  Albuquerque: 

(University  of  New  Mexico,  D.  W.  Johnson,  Analyst.) 

Silica,  free 48.33$ 

Silica,  combined 28.21 


NEW    MEXICO   MIN.ES  AND   MINERALS.  253 

Alumina 5.90 

Iron  oxide 3.41 

Magnesia trace 

Lime 1 . 54 

Water  combined 2.00 

Moisture. 4.28 

Carbon  dioxide 3.16 

Potassa 2.43 

Soda 80 

Total 100.00$ 

According  to  the  following   figures  given  by   the  U.   S. 

Geological  Survey,  it  is  seen  that  the  clay  working  industries 

of    this    country    are  assuming  enormous  proportions  and 

rapidly  increasing  from  year  to  year. 
The  product  reported  for  1901  was  valued  at  $110,211,587, 

increasing  to  $122,169,531  in  1902;  making  a  gain  of  $11,957,- 

944  or  10.85  per  cent. 

During  the  year   1900,  the  clay  product,  which  was  made 

into  brick,  etc.,  in  New  Mexico,  was  valued  at  $26,900;  this 

increased  to  $81,345  in  1901. 

Building  and  Ornamental  Stones. 

Our  knowledge  of  the  building  and  ornamental  stones  of 
New  Mexico  is  as  limited  and  meager  as  that  of  the  clays. 

Until  within  the  past  few  years  no  special  want  was  felt  to 
exploit  the  fields  in  this  particular  line.  As  previously  stated, 
the  material  closest  at  hand  was  the  kind  utilized  by  the  in- 
habitants on  the  frontier,  who  generally  occupied  the  land  ad- 
jacent and  bordering  on  the  principal  streams. 

Since  suitable  building  stones  were  never  quite  so  con- 
venient for  immediate  uses  as  the  adobe  dirt,  the  latter  has 
always  been  looked  upon  as  a  favorite  kind  of  building  mate- 
rial, since  it  possesses  the  elements  of  both  cheapness  and 
durability. 

Within  a  radius  of  twenty-five  miles  the  towns  of  the  terri- 
tory may  be  supplied  with  most  kinds  of  building  stones. 

Since  the  compound  parts  of  rocks  are  minerals,  a  rock 
properly  defined  would  be  a  mineral  aggregate.  Rocks  are 
classified  with  respect  to  the  origin. 

Three  general  classifications  are  recognized;  igneous,  meta- 
morphic  and  sedimentary.  Under  these  three  divisions,  the 
rocks  of  economic  importance  found  in  different  parts  of  New 
Mexico,  may  be  tabulated  as  follows: 


254  NEW    MEXICO   MINES   AND   MINERALS. 

Igneous:  Metamorphic:  Sedimentary: 
Granite                    Gneiss  Sandstone 

Trachyte  Serpentine  Limestone 

Rhyolite.  Quartzite.  Dolomite. 

Igneous  rocks  are  the  types  which  have  solidified  from  a 
molten  magma;  these  are  termed  the  crystalline  series. 

Metamorphic  rocks  embrace  both  the  igneous  and  sedimen- 
tary types,  which  have  been  radically  altered  by  dynamical 
agencies;  these  are  termed  the  metamorphic  series. 

Sedimentary  rocks  are  those  which  have  been  laid  down  in 
bedded  planes  due  to  the  action  of  water;  these  are  termed 
the  sedimentary  series. 

Since  the  processes  of  nature  are  continuous,  we  are  not 
wholly  certain  that  any  part  of  the  original  crust  of  the  earth 
exists  as  it  solidified  from  the  Plutonic  magma;  but  on  the 
contrary  it  may  have  been  regenerated  a  number  of  times. 

The  above  classification  may  be  regarded  as  general,  for 
many  varieties  exist  under  each  special  type  passing  by 
tentative  gradations,  into  other  existing  types  of  the  series. 

The  value  of  a  stone  for  building  purposes  depends  largely 
on  two  physical  conditions:  (1)  strength,  (2)  durability. 

The  tests  of  strength  are  three  in  number,  viz: 

1.  —  Crushing  strength. 

2.  —  Transverse  strength  (modulus  of  rupture). 

3.  —  Modulus  or  coefficient  of  elasticity. 

In  order  to  determine  the  modulus  of  rupture: 
Let, 

TF^concentrated  load  at  center  in  Ibs. 
&—  breadth  in  inches 
d=depth  in  inches 


#=  modulus  of  rupture  in  Ibs.   per  sq.  inch;  then 
from  a  principle  in  statics 


W=  -  R 
$1 

31 
whence,  fi=  ---  W. 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS. 


255 


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256  NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS. 

The  tests  of  durability  are  four  in  number,  viz: 

1. — Specific  gravity  (weight  of  stone  per  cubic  foot). 
2. — Porosity. 

3. — Temperature  (extreme  heat,  freezing  and  thawing). 
4.  —Effect  of  acids  (carbonic  and  sulphurous). 

The  first  and  second  of  this  latter  classification  are  not  so 
important  as  those  of  three  and  four. 

Under  the  latter  two  divisions  would  come  the  test  of 
weathering;  this,  by  far,  is  usually  a  more  important  factor 
to  look  into  than  any  other  test  to  which  a  stone  may  be  sub- 
jected. If  a  stone  will  not  stand  weathering  it  is  of  little  use 
as  a  building  material  or  in  macadamizing  thoroughfares. 

Beauty  in  color  of  building  stone  is  always  desired  though 
it  is  not  requisite  to  either  strength  or  durability. 

Some  stones  are  so  constituted  as  to  be  easily  affected  by 
atmospheric  agencies;  especially  from  carbonic  acid  which  is 
present  in  the  air  to  a  small  degree. 

It  is  oftentimes  observed  in  stone  structures  that  some 
colored  compound  oozes  out  of  the  pores  of  the  rock  and 
stains  the  whole  building.  This  stain  is  usually  white  or  of 
a  reddish-yellow  color,  and  is  due  to  the  presence  of  alkalies 
or  to  the  oxidation  of  small  particles  of  iron  pyrites,  which 
exist  in  the  stone. 

East  of  Albuquerque  in  the  Sandia  mountains  some  splen- 
did quarries  of  granite,  sandstone  and  limestone  are  opened 
up.  The  limestone  is  obtained  in  Soda  Springs  canyon. 

The  granite  is  of  coarse  texture,  containing  some  very 
large  crystals  of  feldspar  and  hornblende,  and  of  a  gray 
color;  it  is  quarried  in  the  Carnuel  canyon.  A  drab-colored 
arkose  sandstone  is  also  used  extensively  in  Albuquerque;  it 
is  a  splendid  building  stone  and  comes  from  Soda  Springs 
canyon.  A  white  fine  grained  sandstone  comes  from  the 
Tijeras  section  and  is  very  popular  for  window  and  door  sills 
and  footing  stones  of  brick  columns. 

West  of  Las  Cruces  is  a  mottled  marble  of  a  very  good 
quality;  the  crystallization  is  both  fine  and  coarse  grained. 

Southeast  of  Lordsburg  about  twelve  miles  is  a  rhyolite 
rock  of  nearly  a  white  color  and  is  a  most  valuable  building- 
stone. 

Silver  City  uses  limestone  and  a  dark  colored  curly  marble 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS.  257 

found  in  the  vicinity.  Other  stones  of  an  igneous  origin  are 
also  used.  Lordsburg  is  the  nearest  accessible  railroad 
point  to  a  valuable  quarry  of  ricolite.  No  prettier  ornamental 
stone  is  to  be  found  in  the  west. 

The  quarry  is  on  the  Gila  river  north  of  Red  Rock  postoffice 
and  is  too  far  from  transportation  to  be  handled  at  a  profit. 
The  colors  are  yellow,  blue,  green  and  black  of  various  shades 
and  beautifully  blended  in  a  banded  combination.  It  has  a 
specific  gravity  of  2.,") 7. 

The  analysis  is: 

Silica 43.52% 

Aluminum 16.88 

Magnesia 23.78 

Iron  oxide trace 

Lime 2.22 

Soda  and  Potassa 2.50 

Water  (combined) 11.10 

Total 100.00% 

Some  of  this  stone  has  been  used  in  several  of  the  larger 
buildings  in  Chicago,  since  it  is  susceptible  of  high  polish. 

Las  Vegas  is  noted  for  its  beautiful  sandstone;  for  paving 
and  dimension  stones  these  quarries  have  no  equal  in  New 
Mexico. 

There  are  three  varieties  of  these  sandstones,  the  dark  red, 
gray  and  brown.  The  paving  stones  are  the  dark  red,  while 
the  building  stones  embrace  all  three  colors.  There  are  four 
principal  quarries  at  Las  Vegas.  The  New7  Mexico  Normal 
is  built  of  the  dark  red  variety. 

At  Raton  a  splendid  gray  type  of  sandstone  is  the  kind 
most  used;  this  comes  from  three  different  quarries. 

The  building  stone  most  used  at  Socorro  is  a  light  gray 
trachyte;  it  comes  from  the  Socorro  mountain.  It  is  easily 
quarried  and  worked;  the  main  structure  of  the  School  of 
Mines  is  composed  of  this  stone. 

Santa  Fe  county  is  not  destitute,  by  any  means,  of  good 
qualities  of  building  stones.  The  beautiful  cream  colored 
sandstone  used  in  the  Capitol  building  came  from  a  quarry 
on  the  hilltop  at  Lamy.  Marble  and  good  types  of  granite 
are  found  in  the  vicinity  of  Santa  Fe. 

In  the  vicinity  of  Roswell  there  is  good  sandstone  and  lime- 
stone used  for  building  purposes  in  that  city.  The  limestone 


258  NEW    MEXICO   MINES   AND    MINERALS. 

is  from  quarries  about  five  miles  from  town;  the  sandstone 
is  some  fifteen  miles  out. 

North  of  Ancho  about  two  miles  is  a  small  lead  of  a  beauti- 
ful variegated  flint;  this  stone  takes  a  high  polish  and  could 
be  used  to  advantage  in  making  small  ornamental  pieces.  It 
is  reported  that  a  lithographic  stone  of  most  excellent  quality 
exists  in  the  Organ  mining  district. 

At  Gallup  are  some  splendid  Cretaceous  sandstones  which 
are  utilized  to  good  advantage  in  that  town;  a  number  of 
handsome  structures  having  been  constructed  from  that  ma- 
terial. 

Marble  quarries  near  Alamogordo  have  recently  been 
opened  up  with  a  view  to  supplying  El  Paso  with  this  valuable 
product;  the  quality  is  said  to  be  very  fine,  since  the  stone  is 
of  a  mottled  appearance;  it  is  very  attractive  in  ornamental 
work. 

A  good  quality  of  marble  is  said  to  exist  at  White  Oaks;  the 
stone,  as  yet,  has  never  found  its  way  into  the  markets. 
White  Oaks,  also,  possesses  a  beautiful  brown  type  of  sand- 
stone, which  has  been  used  in  the  local  trade  to  a  certain 
extent. 

Deposits  of  lithographic  stone  are  reported  in  several  local- 
ities; but  little,  however,  has  been  done  toward  their  develop- 
ment. 

In  the  vicinity  of  Bluewater,  south  of  the  railroad  in  Va- 
lencia county,  the  New  Mexico  Pumice  Stone  Company  is 
opening  up  what  appears  to  be  a  first  class  lithographic  ma- 
terial; the  value  of  the  product,  of  course,  will  depend  on  the 
size  of  the  slab. 


CHAPTER   XXXIII. 

* 

MICA. 

The  mica  deposits  of  New  Mexico  have,  as  yet,  never 
received  the  attention  to  which  they  are  entitled;  chiefly, 
because  the  demands  for  that  product  have  heretofore  been 
supplied  from  localities  nearer  the  manufacturing  centers 
and  from  districts  where  transportation  facilities  were  more 
favorable  than  in  this  territory. 

By  the  increasing  growth  of  the  uses  of  mica  in  the  varied 
industries,  the  time  i's  near  at  hand  when  the  New  Mexico 
fields  will  be  carefully  exploited. 

The  greater  quantity  of  mica  mined  in  the  United  States 
comes  from  four  states,  viz:  New  Hampshire,  North  Carolina, 
Virginia  and  South  Dakota.  Production  from  the  other 
states  is  comparatively  insignificant.  In  the  United  States, 
the  output  of  sheet  mica  was,  during  1901,  360,060  Ibs.,  valued 
at  S98,H59.  Much  mica  is  imported;  the  principal  countries 
of  export  are  Brazil,  Canada  and  India.  The  mica  from 
Canada  is  of  a  wine  color  and  is  said  to  be  the  best  known  for 
electrical  purposes,  owing  to  its  great  non-conductive  proper- 
ties. 

Micas  are,  substantially,  silicates  of  alumina;  the  varieties 
are  determined  by  the  presence  of  other  material  compounds. 

Muscovite  (white  or  transparent  mica)  is  the  potash  variety; 
it  is  the  kind  used  where  transparency  is  essential. 

Phlogopite  (brownish-yellow  mica)  is  the  magnesium  type; 
the  kind  most  valued  in  electrical  insulation.  Biotite  (dark 
or  black  mica)  also,  a  magnesium  compound;  used  for  various 
purposes  where  economy  is  desirable. 

The  relative  classes  of  mica,  pertaining  to  market  values, 
increase  in  geometrical  progression: 

Relative  weights. 

Black  and  flawed  mica 1 

Smoked  and  discolored 2 

White  or  transparent 4 

Wine-colored,  tough  and  hard 8 


260  NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS. 

Muscovite  is  the  most  common  of  the  micas,  and  is  one  of 
the  principal  constituents  of  many  rocks.  It  is  frequently 
derived  from  the  alteration  of  some  species  of  rocks;  such  as 
cyanite,  feldspar,  topaz,  etc.,  and  is  thus  of  secondary  origin. 

The  occurrence  of  the  commercial  forms  of  mica  is  as- 
sociated with  feldspathic-granite,  pegmatite  and  felsite  rocks. 

Mica  is  infusible  and  is  insoluble  in  acids.  Clear,  free-split- 
ting mica  is  trimmed  and  assorted,  usually,  into  four  sizes. 
viz: 

No.  1,  measures  4x6  inches  or  6x8  inches,  and  sometimes 
in  larger  pieces  for  special  use;  No.  2,  averages  3x4  inches 
to  4x6  inches;  No.  3,  runs  from  2x4  inches  to  3x4  inches; 
and  No.  4,  averages  from  1  inch  up  to  2x4  inches.  No.  4  mica 
is  known  as  rough  trimmed  mica.  The  waste  or  trimmings 
are  sold  at  the  mills  for  fine  grinding,  at  from  $15.00  to  $20.00 
per  ton.  A  good  quality  of  mica  after  it  is  mined  will  bring 
from  $150  to  $550  per  ton. 

With  the  sizes  of  the  sheets,  other  things  being  equal,  the 
value  of  mica  increases  in  geometrical  progression. 

Insulation  boards  and  bricks  of  mica  called  "micanite,"'  are 
built  up  with  the  thin  waste  scraps,  shellac  being  inserted 
between  each  flake,  the  whole  is  subjected  to  a  2,000  pound 
pressure  per  square  inch.  It  is  afterward  steamed  and 
remolded,  then  finally  hardened  in  a  kiln.  The  tremendous 
growth  of  .electric  appliances  has  caused  an  increased  demand 
for  insulating  materials. 

Ground  mica  is  used  in  the  manufacture  of  wall  paper, 
giving  it  a  spangled  effect  and  also  with  the  finer  grades  of 
paper  a  metallic  white  surface.  As  a  lubricant  for  axle  and 
journal  bearings  in  heavy  machinery  it  is  of  great  value. 

The  first  mention  of  mica  in  New  Mexico  was  made  by 
Lieutenant  Pike  in  his  Report  of  1807.  He  says  :  "Near  Santa 
Fe,  in  some  mountains, a  stratum  of  talc,  which  is  so  large  and 
flexible  as  to  render  it  capable  of  being  subdivided  into  thin 
flakes,  of  which  the  greater  portion  of  the  houses  in  Santa 
Fe  and  all  the  villages  to  the  north,  have  their  window  lights 
made." 

This  mica  evidently  came  from,  the  Cribbensville  mines, 
near  Petaca,  Rio  Arriba  county;  from  Nambe,  Santa  Fe 
county;  and  from  the  little  village  Talco,  in  Mora  county.  It 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS.  261 

seems  that  the  natives  of  New  Mexico  knew  mica  only  as 
'  «>:  hence,  the  name  of  the  little  village  Talco,  which  is  near 
the  mica  deposits  in  Mora  county,  as  above  mentioned.  It 
also  appears  that  these  early  people  did  not  isolate  the 
mineral  ?/eso(gypsum)  from  the  £afco(mica).  Since  the  selenite 
variety  of  gypsum  occurs  in  divers  localities  in  large  trans- 
parent plates,  it  was  used  indiscriminately  with  mica,  when- 
ever transparencies  were  needed. 

Down  to  a  period  of  time  as  late  as  the  American  Occupa- 
tion in  1^4(3,  there  were  no  glass  window  lights  in  Santa  Fe, 
excepting  in  the  Old  Palace.  The  most  extensive  deposits  of 
mica  found  in  the  territory,  so  far  as  known  at  the  present 
time,  lie  two  and  one-half  miles  southwest  of  Petaca  in  Rio 
A i-riba  county  and  are  known  as  the  Cribbensville  deposits. 

The  geological  occurrence  is  in  feldspathic  granite  asso- 
ciated with  white  quartz  and  mica-schist. 

Many  of  these  claims  are  fairly  well  developed,  especially 
the  property  owned  by  Moritz  Leichtle.  Considerable  mica 
has  been  shipped  from  these  deposits  in  recent  years;  at 
present  the  mines  are  idle.  This  property  is  ten  miles  west 
of  the  D.  &  R.  G.  Railway. 

About  three  miles  north  of  Ojo  Caliente  in  Taos  county, 
some  fairly  good  indications  of  mica  exist.  One  claim,  es- 
pecially, known  as  the  Mica  Age  and  belonging  to  Hon.  An- 
tonio Joseph,  deserves  mention. 

The  deposit  occurs  in  a  feldspathic-granite,  very  similar  in 
character  to  that  at  Petaca.  Some  little  mica  was  shipped 
from  here  about  1901.  No  extensive  development  has  been 
done;  the  product  shipped  came  from  a  sort  of  open  cut  and 
winze,  not  exceeding  25  feet  in  depth.  This  mica  is,  perhaps, 
a  biotite  and  is  not  nearly  so  transparent  as  that  at  Petaca. 

The  mines  at  Nambe  in  Santa  Fe  county  have  been  only 
meagerly  exploited  and  the  same  will  apply  to  the  Talco  de- 
posits in  Mora  county.  Several  other  localities  have  reported 
mica,  yet  no  development  has  been  done  and  the  time  is  not 
quite  at  hand  for  the  proper  exploitation  of  this  mineral 
product. 

In  the  first  canyon  north  of  Mocking  Bird  spring,  in  the 
San  Andreas  mountains,  southeastern  Socorro  county,  some 
very  nice  books  of  mica  float  were  found  by  the  writer  during 


262  NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS. 

a  visit  to  that  region  in  June,  1901;  the  float  was  not  traced 
up  to  its  source. 

Good  mica,  it  is  said  has  recently  been  discovered  in  the 
Florida  mountains,  southeast  of  Deming;  this  rumor,  how- 
ever, has  not  been  verified. 

Sulphur. 

Italy  stands  first  in  the  production  of  Sulphur  and  has 
long  been  the  principal  source  of  the  world's  supply.  The 
principal  provinces  of  production  are  Caltanisetta  and  Gir- 
genti,  on  the  island  of  Sicily,  in  the  region  of  Mt.  Etna,  where 
nearly  one  thousand  mines  are  worked. 

The  occurrence  of  sulphur  is  generally  associated  with 
volcanic  rocks,  the  cavities  and  interstices  of  which  have  be- 
come filled,  due  to  the  escaping  of  sulphuretted  hydrogen 
gas.  This  probable  reaction  is  best  shown  in  the  following 
chemical  equation: 

B2S+O— H2O+S. 

The  sulphuretted  hydrogen  on  coming  in  contact  with  the 
air  drops  the  atom  of  sulphur  in  exchange  for  its  equivalent 
in  oxygen;  thus,  water  is  formed  and  native  sulphur  pro- 
duced. 

In  Italy  the  deposits  occur  in  lenticular  masses  in  veins 
and  fault-fissures  in  what  is  supposed  to  be  Miocene  rocks. 

Sulphur  is  found  in  most  all  volcanic  regions  associated 
with  the  eruptive  rocks,  occurring  in  the  cavities,  faults  and 
on  the  shelving  rocks  in  volcanic  craters. 

During  the  early  Spanish  conquests  in  the  New  World, 
sulphur  was  extracted  from  a  number  of  places,  and  was 
used  in  the  manufacture  of  gun  powder.  Cortez  before  lay- 
ing siege  to  the  City  of  Mexico,  gathered  a  large  quantity  of 
sulphur  which  he  used  in  making  powder.  This  was  taken 
from  the  shelving  rocks  of  the  crater  of  Popocatepetl,  by 
lowering  his  men  with  ropes  into  the  depths  below. 

For  a  similar  purpose,  Coronado  and  other  early  New 
Mexican  explorers,  utilized  the  sulphur  from  the  Jemez  Sul- 
phur Springs  from  the  old  sulphur  mines  near  Guadalupe  and 
elsewhere  in  this  territory.  It  is  thus  seen  that  sulphur  was 
among  the  first  minerals  mined  and  utilized  in  New  Mexico. 

Not  until  the  fall  of  1901  did  New  Mexico  produce  and 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS.  263 

retine  sulphur  on  a  commercial  scale.  The  credit  of  this 
honor  is  due  to  Mariano  S.  Otero,  who  in  that  year  completed 
a  plant  of  five-ton  capacity,  and  operated  the  same  up  to  the 
time  of  his  death,  which  occurred  in  April,  1904. 

The  deposits  of  sulphur  at  the  Otero  works  are  very  con- 
siderable and  are  due  to  the  eruptive  and  volcanic  nature. of 
the  region. 

It  is  said  that  the  old  mines  of  the  sulphur  deposits  near 
Guadalupe  are  being  looked  into  with  a  view  of  working  them. 

Near  White  Oaks  and  in  the  eastern  part  of  New  Mexico, 
contiguous  to  the  Texas  border,  sulphur  is  found  in  the 
gypsum  of  those  localities;  the  deposits  have  their  duplicate 
in  the  extensive  gypsum  beds  of  Louisiana  and  western  Texas. 

Guano. 

This  product  is  used  as  a  fertilizer  and  is  always  in  good 
demand  when  the  percentage  of  phosphoric  acid  runs  suffi- 
ciently high. 

The  principal  supply  of  the  world  comes  from  the  small 
groups  of  islands  off  the  western  coast  of  South  America. 
Guano  is  the  accumulation  of  the  deposit  of  birds  found  in 
places  which  they  have  occupied  for  roosting  quarters  for 
untold  centuries. 

In  New  Mexico  this  deposit  is  due  to  bats,  and  is  found  in 
caverns  and  shelving  rocks  of  the  vesicular  lavas  and  along 
the  limestone  escarpment  or  rim-rock  of  the  various  mountain 
ranges. 

The  most  important  deposit  of  guano  yet  found  in  this  Ter- 
ritory was  in  a  volcanic  crater,  northeast  of  Engle,  in  the 
plains  of  the  Jornada  del  Muerto. 

This  deposit  was  under  the  shelving  rock  in  the  crater; 
much  of  the  rock  and  debris  had  fallen  so  as  to  almost  com- 
pletely cover  the  deposit.  There  must  have  been  3,000  tons 
of  this  deposit  shipped  to  California  during  the  years  1901-2. 
The  lower  or  bottom  part  of  this  guano,  resembled  and  was 
indurated  as  a  rock. 

Embedded  in  this  deposit  a  mummy  of  one  of  the  prehistoric 
people  was  uncovered,  which  had  been  wrapped  in  a  cloth  of 
coarse  texture  and  shelved  in  this  awful  sepulcher  centuries 
ago. 


264  NEW    MEXICO   MINES  AND    MINERALS. 

In  Grant  and  Luna  counties  smaller  deposits  have  been 
discovered  and  shipped  at  a  considerable  profit.  Other  depos- 
its in  the  Black  range,  on  the  upper  Gila  and  in  the  Caballo 
mountains  are  said  to  exist,  but  have  never  been  fully  ex- 
ploited. 

Pumice  Stone  and  Tripolite. 

There  seems  to  be  several  localities  in  New  Mexico  where 
pumice  stone  exists. 

The  New  Mexico  Pumice  Stone  Company,  promoted  by  B. 
B.  Christy,  architect  of  Albuquerque,  has,  perhaps,  the  most 
important  deposit  of  this  material  in  New  Mexico.  This 
deposit  which  is  on  the  north  side  of  the  railway  near  Grant 
station  in  Valencia  county,  evidently  owes  its  existence  to  the 
past  volcanic  action  due  to  Mt.  Taylor  in  that  vicinity.  The 
powdered  material  is  equal  to  the  imported  product  of  the 
Old  World. 

On  the  opposite  side  of  the  Rio  Grande  from  Socorro,  about 
fifteen  miles,  a  large  bed  of  pumice  stone  occurs;  the  quality 
is  splendid.  This  latter  deposit  is  locally  known  as  the  "tri- 
poli"  beds. 

Various  other  localities  are  reported  to  have  a  similar 
product,  but  no  special  investigations  have  ever  been  made  of 
any  of  them,  since  no  commercial  importance  has  ever  been 
attached  to  such  material. 

Tripolite  is  reported  in  a  few  localities,  but  it  is  to  be 
doubted  whether  such  a  product  has  been  found  in  Ne.w 
Mexico;  usually  the  average  person  makes  no  distinction  be- 
tween these  two  products,  yet  they  are  formed  under  entirely 
different  conditions. 

Ocher  (Mineral  Paint). 

In  numerous  localities  throughout  the  territory  are  found 
deposits  of  ocher  which  cannot  be  excelled  in  quality  for  the 
manufacture  of  paints.  Most  every  county  has  deposits  of 
greater  or  less  extent  and  quality.  One  of  the  purest  beds 
of  this  class  of  minerals  exists  in  the  foot  hills  of  the  Sandia 
mountains,  east  of  Albuquerque,  in  the  immediate  vicinity  of 
Coyote  springs.  This  deposit  lies  in  a  bed  several  feet  in 
thickness  and  some  portions  of  the  strata  would  scarcely  need 
grinding,  the  material  being  so  line.  The  colors  are  a 


:VERSi 

o, 
%c, 

XK\V    MKXICO    MINKS    AND    MINERALS.  265 

beautiful  red  and  yellow.  This  deposit  is  owned  by  C.  C. 
and  Brad  Jones. 

In  the  vicinity  of  San  Pedro  are  large  deposits  of  ocher 
which  partake  of  most  every  tint  imaginable. 

The  discussion  of  the  mineral  paints  and  the  localities  in 
which  they  occur  would  require  a  volume  in  itself  to  do  justice 
to  this  natural  product. 

Alum. 

New  Mexico  is  said  to  have  one  of  the  most  extensive  alum 
deposits  in  the  world. 

These  immense  beds  are  on  the  upper  Gila  River  about 
lifty  miles  above  the  L.  C.  ranch  in  Grant  county. 

This  field  embraces  over  two  thousand  acres  of  nearly  pure 
Alunogen  (hydrous  aluminium  sulphate). 

After  entering  the  narrow  part  of  the  canyon  of  the  Gila 
River,  deposits  of  alum  are  found  at  intervals  in  going  up  the 
stream  for  a  distance  of  nearly  forty  miles,  which  terminate 
in  the  main  beds  some  ten  miles  below  the  Gila  hot  springs. 

These  beds  occur  in  the  metamorphic  and  eruptive  rocks 
of  the  region  and  their  genesis  is  evidently  due  to  solfataric 
action  in  the  vicinity  of  the  hot  springs. 

The  mining  district  is  known  as  "Alumina,'5  and  about 
1.400  acres  of  the  deposit  were  patented  in  1894  by  Lucien  C. 
Warner  and  associates  of  New  York.  Lack  of  transportation 
prevents  the  product  reaching  the  market;  the  nearest  rail- 
road point  is  Silver  City,  which  is  ninety  miles  distant. 

Another  large  area  of  alum  beds  almost  as  extensive  as  the 
Gila  River  deposits  exists  in  eastern  Mora  county,  about 
twenty-five  miles  from  Wagon  Mound. 

This  deposit  is  not  nearly  so  pure  as  that  of  the  Gila  River; 
an  analysis  made  by  the  writer  in  190*2,  gives  the  following 
results,  to  wit: 

Silica  21.04', 

Alumina 7.2:5 

Calcium    oxide ..'Hi 

Magnesium  oxide ,18 

Sulphur *11.92 

Water  and  volatile  matter 59.27 

Total 100. 00# 

F.  A.  Jones,  Analyst.  May,  1902. 


266  NEW    MEXICO   MINES   AND   MINERALS. 

In  the  northwest  part  of  Sandoval  county,  lying  between 
sand  rock  in  sort  of  a  trough,  is  a  deposit  varying  in  width 
from  fifteen  to  twenty  feet  and  one  thousand  feet  in  length. 
Oxide  of  iron  gives  the  deposit  a  reddish  color. 

Southeast  of  Springer  on  the  ranch  of  Horace  C.  Abbott 
are  deposits  similar  to  those  in  Mora  county. 

The  occurrence  of  the  three  last  deposits  is  probably  due 
to  the  oxidation  of  pyrites  in  bituminous  shales  and  clays. 

In  the  Sangre  de  Cristo  mountains  west  of  Red  River  post- 
office  an  extensive  bed  is  said  to  exist;  this  report,  however, 
is  not  verified.  Smaller  deposits,  having  no  present  commer- 
cial value,  occur  in  numerous  localities  throughout  the  ter- 
ritory. 


CHAPTER  XXXIV. 


GEMS  AND  PRECIOUS  STONES. 

Beside  the  fame  of  her  turquoise  New  Mexico  has  in  many 
instances  produced  some  remarkable  gems  and  precious 
stones. 

The  most  plentiful  gem  is  the  peridot,  found  in  the  gravel 
washes  on  the  Zum  Indian  reservation  and  at  other  points  in 
the  western  part  of  the  territory.  These  gems  of  the  chrys- 
olite are  pronounced  by  experts  to  be  the  finest  in  the  world. 
In  the  same  locality  and  in  Taos  and  Santa  Fe  counties  are 
found  many  beautiful  garnets;  these  gems  occur  in  the 
gravels  and  are  more  or  less  associated  with  the  peridot.  A 
wide  range  in  the  variation  of  color  is  displayed  in  New  Mex- 
ican garnets,  that  vary  from  a  light  rose  to  a.  bright  red;  this 
gem  is  frequently  termed  "ruby-garnet"'. 

A  few  valuable  emeralds  or  beryls  have  been  picked  up  from 
the  gravels  near  Santa  Fe  and  are  highly  prized  for  their 
great  beauty. 

Some  very  good  tire  opals  have  come  from  the  Cochiti 
country  and  also,  from  the  vicinity  of  Santa  Rita. 

On  a  few  occasions  small  sapphires  and  even  diamonds  have 
been  accidentally  found  in  gravel  beds  of  certain  localities  in 
Santa  Fe  county;  their  occurrence,  however,  is  very  rare. 

Euclase  has  been  reported  found  in  the  vicinity  of  Taos. 
Agates,  amethysts,  tourmaline,  quartz  crystals,  carnelian, 
moonstone  and  chalcedony  are  more  or  less  common  in  the 
mountainous  regions  of  New  Mexico.  It  is  not  probable  that 
New  Mexico  will  ever  take  first  rank  as  a  producer  of  all  the 
gems  and  precious  stones;  notwithstanding,  it  is  likely  to  al- 
ways remain  in  the  lead  in  the  production  of  turquoise,  and 
hold  a  high  position  in  peridots  and  perhaps  garnets. 

Turquoise. 

•'To  wear  a  turquoise  stone  of  blue 
Will  bring  good  luck  and  fortune,  too.'' 

The  name  turquoise  is  apparently  from  the  French, 
which  has  its  equivalent  in  Turkish:  signifying  that  the 


268  NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS. 

gem  first  makes  its  appearance  in  Europe  by  way  of  Turkey. 

The  celebrated  oriental  gem  comes  from  a  district  in  Persia, 
near  Nishapur,  Khorassan,  on  the  southern  slopes  of  Mount 
Ali-Mirsa,  northwest  of  the  village  of  Maden.  An  inferior 
turquoise  comes  from  Mount  Sinai  in  the  Megara  valley.  A 
greenish  blue  variety  is  found  in  the  Kirgeshi  Steppes. 
Siberia. 

There  are  a  few  other  localities  of  minor  importance  of  the 
Old  World  from  whence  this  gem  comes.  An  earthy  variety 
comes  from  San  Lorenzo,  Chili,  South  America. 

In  the  United  States  the  gem  is  found  in  Colorado  on  the 
slopes  of  the  mountain  of  the  Holy  Cross;  in  Nevada,  about 
five  miles  north  of  Columbus;  inFresno  county,  California;  in 
Alabama;  in  Arizona;  and  in  New  Mexico. 

Of  the  various  parts  of  the  world  in  which  this  gem  is 
found,  it  is  now  generally  conceded  that  the  purest  stones 
come  from  New  Mexico. 

The  production  of  turquoise  in  the  United  States  for  the 
year  1902  was  valued  at  $130,000,  against  $118,000  for  1901;  the 
greater  portion  of  these  values  being  accredited  to  New 
Mexico. 

Odontolite,  a  fossil-bone  or  tooth,  colored  by  a  phosphate  of 
iron,  was  used  a  few  centuries  ago,  and  is  still  used  to  a  cer- 
tain extent  for  jewelry;  it  is  frequently  passed  for  genuine 
turquoise. 

Pliny  speaks  of  the  mineral  callais,  which  is  now  generally 
regarded  as  turquoise. 

There  is  but  little  doubt  about  the  antiquity  of  turquoise  in 
being  used  as  an  ornamental  gem,  in  both  the  Old  and  the 
New  Worlds. 

The  Mohammedans  have  used  the  polished  gems  for  orna- 
mental effects  in  their  tabernacles  of  worship;  as  likewise  did 
the  ancient  Peruvians  and  Mexicans  in  beautifying  their 
temples  of  the  Sun.  Who  daresay,  the  throne  of  gold  in  the 
gilded  palace  of  Tezones  was  not  inlaid  by  the  turquoise 
from  the  mines  at  Mount  Chalchihuitl*  close  to  Los  Cerrillos 
and  from  the  Burro  mountains  near  Silver  City? 

Spanish  or  Indian  work  on  the  gold  and  silver  mines  of  New 

*Chalchihuitl,  the  Indian  name  for  turquoise.  In  the  archives  at  Santa  Fe  is  found 
the  record  of  the  Ch&lchihuitl  grant  bearing  the  date  of  1763. 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS.  269 

Mexico,  prior  to  1680,  was  very  meager;  and  the  evidence  is 
scarcely  sufficient  to  establish  any  pronounced  degree  of 
mining  for  the  metals,  excepting  in  a  very  few  instances.  But 
the  mining  of  turquoise  both  at  Los  Cerrillos  and  in  the  Burro 
mountains,  before  the  coming  of  the  Spaniards,  can  scarcely 
be  questioned.  Immense  excavations  and  old  dumps,  with 
which  are  associated  relics  of  the  stone  age,  practically  verify 
the  antiquity  of  those  workings.  Coiled  pottery,  the  oldest 
known  type,  is  in  evidence;  fragments  of  which  are  found  in 
the  old  dumps  both  at  Los  Cerrillos  and  in  the  Burro  moun- 
tains. 

The  writer  with  his  own  hands  took  from  the  old  excavation 
at  Mount  Chalchihuitl,  two  stone  hammers,  which  are  here 
reproduced. 

It  is  said  that  a  stone  hammer  weighing  some  twenty 
pounds,  with  a  portion  of  the  handle  still  intact  about  the 
groove,  was  taken  from  these  same  excavations  a  few  years 
ago.  These  stone  hammers  are  made  from  a  hornblende- 
andesite,  common  to  the  Cerrillos  hills.  The  desiccated  con- 
dition of  the  drift  in  which  this  latter  relic  was  found  would 
account  for  the  preservation  of  the  wooden  handle. 

Similar  implements  and  tools  of  stone  have  been  taken  out 
of  the  old  mines  and  dumps,  in  the  Burro  mountains,  Hachita 
and  in  the  Jarillas. 

Prom  personal  observation,  the  writer  is  of  the  opinion  that 
turquoise  was  hunted  and  mined  by  the  aborigines  of  tli3 
west,  many  years  and  perhaps  centuries,  before  the  mining 
of  the  precious  metals;  and  that  mining  for  gold  and  silver 
was  carried  on  but  little  in  New  Mexico  by  either  Spaniard 
or  Indian  prior  to  1800:  with  the  possible  exception  of  the  old 
workings  of  Mina  del  Tierra  and  vicinity,  near  the  turquoise 
mines  at  Los  Cerrillos. 

Perhaps  much  of  the  supposed  turquoise  used  by  the 
aboriginal  Pueblo  Indians,  was  malachite:  they  being  unable 
to  detect  a  difference  between  genuine  turquoise  and  that 
mineral.  It  is  quite  common  to  find  small  pieces  of  the  latter 
mineral  in  ancient  graves  and  ruins,  associated  with  pieces  of 
the  pure  turquoise. 

Turquoise,  mine  ralogieally  defined,  is  a  hydrous  phosphate 
of  aluminum,  colored  with  a  complex  copper  compound.  The 


as 

&  0) 


1: 

Bs 

W  o 

D  fc 

H  - 

H  H 


as 


en  TJ 
W  a) 

as 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS.  '27] 

hardness  of  the  stone  is  rated  at  6;  its  specific  gravity  is  from 
2.62  to  2.89.  It  is  noticed  that  the  specific  gravity  of  the  tur- 
quoise of  the  western  states  is  considerably  greater  than 
that  of  the  Persian  gem. 

Some  turquoise  fades  very  rapidly  a  short  time  after  being 
exposed  to  the  air;  this  quality  only  retains  its  color  so  long 
as  it  is  kept  moist;  while  other  qualities  are  appreciably  af- 
fected by  light.  The  various  turquoise  companies  now  have 
each  a  trade  mark  to  protect  the  purchaser,  should  the  gem 
not  prove  permanent  in  color  or  quality. 

The  trade  mark  is  on  the  back  of  the  gem ;  thus  for  the  Gem 
Turquoise  and  Copper  Company  its  trade  mark  is  an  X5  f°r 
the  Toltec  Company  a  f;  for  the  American  Turquoise  Com- 
pany an  /\ :  for  the  Azure  Company  a  Q  ;  an(^  f°r  the  Himalaya 
Company  an  «-«. 

This  guarantee  of  the  genuineness  of  a  stone  in  the  protec- 
tion of  an  inexperienced  purchaser  has  had  much  to  do  with 
the  popularity  of  the  gem  in  the  more  recent  years. 

Professor  Clarke  of  the  United  States  Geological  Survey 
gives  the  following  analysis  of  a  sample  of  bright  blue  New 
Mexico  turquoise : 

Aluminum  and  ferric  oxide 39.53$ 

Phosphorus  pentoxide 31.96 

Copper  monoxide 6 . 30 

Lime 13 

Silica 1.15 

Water 19.80 

Total 9S.87# 

For  comparison,  an  analysis  of  the  Persian  gem,  taken 
from  Dana's  Mineralogy,  is  here  given: 

Alumina 40.19^ 

Phosphorus  pentoxide 32.86 

Copper  monoxide 5.27 

Ferric  and  ferrous  oxides  2.21 

Manganous  oxide .36 

Water..  19.34 


Total 100  2.'}', 

Since  the  New  Mexican  and  Persian  gems  are  more  highly 
prized  than  the  turquoise  from  any  other  part  of  the  world,  it 
is  remarkable  how  closely  the  stones  agree  in  analysis: 


272  NEW    MEXICO   MINES  AND   MINERALS. 

coming  as  they  do  from  diametrically  opposite  points  of  the 
globe. 

Turquoise  is  found  in  four  different  districts  of  New  Mex- 
ico, where  it  is  profitably  mined. 

Taken  in  the  order  of  their  modern  discovery  the  localities 
are:  in  the  vicinity  of  Los  Cerrillos,  lying  to  the  north  of  the, 
railway,  in  Santa  Pe  county;  the  Burro  mountains,  southwest 
of  Silver  City  in  Grant  county;  at  old  Hachiti  in  Grant  county; 
and  in  the  Jarilla  mountains,  Otero  county. 

Much  speculation  as  to  the  origin  of  turquoise  has  been 
indulged  in  by  the  professional  geologist  and  others  scientif- 
ically inclined.  Since  every  turquoise  field  is  somewhat 
different,  no  general  theory  yet  propounded,  would  appear  to 
account  for  its  occurrence  in  the  widely  separated  localities. 
Any  hydrous  aluminum  phosphate  would  answer  to  the 
chemical  composition  of  turquoise.  The  principal  color  con- 
stituent is  due  to  a  hydrous  phosphate  of  copper,  which 
chemically  uniting  with  the  hydrous  aluminum  phosphate 
would,  under  proper  conditions,  form  turquoise. 

From  the  chemistry  of  this  compound,  it  would  suggest 
the  idea  that  we  must  look  to  its  origin  through  aqueous 
rather  than  that  of  igneous  agencies.  Further  it  has  been 
observed,  in  New  Mexico  especially,  that  the  best  specimens 
of  the  stone  do  not  necessarily  come  from  any  great  depth, 
but  rather  from  beneath  a  superficial  covering.  At  depth, 
apparently  a  thinning  out  of  its  occurrence  seems  to  prevail  or 
a  greater  increase  in  the  percentage  of  copper  is  encountered, 
which  renders  the  product  worthless.  Suffice  it  to  say,  that, 
100  feet  in  depth  practically  limits  its  occurrence  as  a  paying 
marketable  product.  Again,  the  partially  decomposed  feld- 
spathic  rocks  in  which  it  is  found  in  New  Mexico,  would  cause 
us  to  look  into  the  constituents  or  component  elements  which 
would  be  liberated  therefrom,  due  to  slow  decomposition  or 
kaolinization.  It  has  also  been  observed  that  where  turquoise 
exists,  more  or  less  copper  is  always  found  associated  with 
the  country  rocks.  Evidently,  this  kaolinization  of  the  matrix 
or  country  rock  would  furnish  the  aluminum  hydrate  and 
phosphoric  acid,  the  latter  being  derived  from  the  apatite/ 
which  is  found  under  the  microscope,  to  be  present  in  the 
Los  Cerrillos  trachyte,  would  combine  with  the  hydrous 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS.  "27:5 

phosphate  of  copper,  thereby  producing  turquoise;  all  other 
conditions  being  favorable. 

The  finding  of  turquoise  along  certain  thin  seams,  planes 
of  cleavage  or  occupying  cavities  previously  made  in  the 
country  rock  and  by  taking  into  consideration  its  reniform, 
stalactitic  and  incrusting  deposits,  would  lead  us  to  believe 
that  its  occurrence  was  due  to  deposition  by  descending  sur- 
face waters,  which  carry  in  solution  all  the  necessary  con- 
stituents required  in  such  a  compound  body.  Some  of  the 
phosphoric  acid  may  have  also  been  derived  from  organic 
matter  at  the  surface. 

Thus,  it  is  easy  to  account  how  the  different  grades,  shades 
and  qualities  of  turquoise  may  vary  from  that  of  the  genuine 
type,  when  considering  the  varying  constituents  of  the 
matrix  or  country  rock  in  which  the  gem  is  embedded. 

In  all  the  districts  of  New  Mexico  where  the  gem  is  found, 
partial  metasomatic  action  has  taken  place,  due  the  deteriora- 
tion through  kaolinization  of  the  feldspathic  rocks. 

This  theory  on  the  origin  of  the  turquoise  of  New  Mexico 
seems  consistent  with  the  nature  of  its  occurrence  and  also 
agrees  with  what  has  been  said  concerning  the  gem  at  depth. 

The  antiquity  of  the  Los  Cerrillos  turquoise  has  been 
briefly  discussed  in  a  preceding  paragraph.  Mount  Chal- 
chihuitl  which  lies  to  the  north  of  the  railway  station  at  that 
point  some  three  miles,  is  where  the  most  extensive  prehis- 
toric and  Spanish  work  was  done. 

In  the  elaborate  ancient  ramifications  of  the  old  workings 
at  Mount  Chalchihuitl,  which  were  extensively  prospected  a 
few  years  ago,  many  stone  hammers,  whole  vessels  of  ancient 
pottery  and  various  crude  mining  implements  were  found. 
It  is  said  that  some  twenty  Indians  were  killed,  about  1680, 
by  the  caving  of  a  large  portion  of  the  works;  this  was  claimed 
to  be  one  of  the  chief  causes  which  led  to  the  general  uprising 
of  the  Pueblos,  that  shortly  afterward  drove  the  Spaniards 
from  the  country. 

Apparently  the  aborigines  and  early  Spaniards  exhausted 
this  particular  place  of  marketable  turquoise;  since  consider- 
able development  was  done  a  few  years  ago  without  any 
success.  This  hill  or  mountain  is  of  a  white  or  yellowish 
appearance  and  is  different  from  the  surrounding  hills;  de- 


274  NEW    MEXICO   MINES   AND   MINERALS. 

composition  by  kaolinization  seems  well  advanced.  Whether 
this  alteration  has  been  hastened  by  escaping  heat  vapors  or 
is  due  solely  to  surface  and  atmospheric  agencies,  it  is  some- 
what difficult  to  conjecture;  the  former  action  seems  most 
probable.  The  numerous  intrusive  dikes  wrhich  traverse  the 
district  have  no  doubt  played  an  active  part  in  the  general 
metamorphism  of  the  associated  rocks. 

Bluish-green  stains  and  streaks  traverse  this  kaolinized 
rock  in  various  irregular  courses;  it  is  along  such  lines  of 
fracture  that  the  marketable  turquoise  is  likely  to  be  encoun- 
tered. Small  seamlets  and  concretionary  nodules,  encased 
by  the  white  or  yellowish  decomposed  matrix  are  likely  to 
contain  valuable  gems.  Although,  several  tons  of  rock  may 
frequently  be  broken  and  yet  no  valuable  stones  be  found. 

Some  three  miles  to  the  northeast  of  Mount  Chalchihuitl 
will  be  found  the  old  Castilian  mine  formerly  worked  by  the 
Spaniards.  About  the  year  1885  the  property  was  exploited 
ajid  located  by  a  man  bearing  the  name  of  Palmerly.  The 
Muniz  claim,  one  of  the  most  important  locations  in  the 
district  was  made  in  1889,  by  F.  Muniz,  a  Mexican. 

In  1891,  C.  J.  Storey  located  the  Sky  Blue,  Morning  Star 
and  Gem  claims. 

These  latter  five  claims  were  bought  by  the  American  Tur- 
quoise Company  of  New  Jersey  about  1892,  and  are  at 
Turquesa. 

Also,  near  and  adjoining  the  properties  of  the  American 
Turquoise  Company,  J.  P.  McNulty  has  three  locations  which 
were  made  since  1892.  Mr.  McNulty  has  been  the  mine 
manager  for  the  Tiffany  people  for  a  number  of  years.  There 
are  a  number  of  other  properties  in  the  district  which  have 
produced  beautiful  gems;  among  which  may  be  mentioned 
the  Blue  Bell  and  Consul  Mahoney. 

Burro  District. 

Much  concerning  the  antiquity  of  the  Los  Cerrillos  tur- 
quoise mines  would  apply  to  the  mines  in  the  Burro  moun- 
tains. 

The  evidence,  of  very  ancient  work  at  these  mines,  may  be 
seen  in  stone  implements  and  fragments  of  coiled  pottery 
found  in  the  old  dumps  and  shafts.  The  writer  was  shown  a 


NEW    MEXICO   MINES  AND   MINERALS.  275 

sharp  piece  of  iron,  very  crude  and  with  an  eye  at  one  end 
where  a  handle  had  been  fitted,  evidently  a  pick;  which  was 
found  in  an  old  pit  and  must  have  .been  of  Spanish  origin. 

The  geology  of  the  turquoise  of  this  district  is  almost  a 
counter  part  of  that  of  Los  Cerrillos.  A  decomposed  felspathic 
granite,  resembling  apliteor  Alaskanite  and  much  kaolinized, 
is  the  nature  of  the  rock,  in  which  the  gem  is  found. 


Fig.  44-"TURQUOISE  JOHN." 

The  turquoise  here  is  much  the  same  as  that  at  Cerrillos 
and  would  take  an  expert  to  note  any  difference  that  might 
exist. 

An  American  by  the  name  of  John  E.  Coleman,  "Turquoise 
John,"  was  the  modern  discoverer  of  turquoise  in  the  Burro 
mountains. 

This  gentleman  located  several  claims  in  the  later  seventies 
and  early  eighties.  Nicholas  C.  Rascom,  M.  W.  Porterfield 


276 


NEW   MEXICO   MINES  AND   MINERALS. 


and  T.  S.  Parker  were  also,  pioneers  in  this  section  of  the 
country  and  who  became  interested  in  a  number  of  claims. 

"Turquoise  John,"  in  1882  disposed  of  his  holdings  to 
Messrs.  Porterfield  and  Parker.  These  two  gentlemen  after- 
wards organized  the  Occidental  and  Oriental  Turquoise  Mining 


Fig.  45-GEM  TURQUOISE  MINE. 

Company;  considerable  development  was  done  during  the 
next  several  years.  In  1901,  a  reorganization  took  place  and 
the  Gem  Turquoise  and  Copper  Company  absorbed  the 
holdings  of  the  first  company. 

Since  the  organization  of  the  new  company  much  develop- 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS.  277 

rnent  has  been  done  and  this  company  now  owns  some  of  the 
most  valuable  mines  of  turquoise  in  the  world. 

There  are  a  number  of  other  properties  in  this  district, 
which  have  good  showings  and  may  become  important  factors 
in  the  future  production  of  this  beautiful  gem. 

Jarilla  District. 

About  1898  some  very  valuable  turquoise  mines  were  ex- 
ploited and  opened  up  in  the  Jarilla  mountains. 

This  district  is  accessible  to  transportation,  since  it  is  tap- 
ped by  the  El  Paso  and  Northeastern  Railway. 

The  principal  group  of  turquoise  claims  here  is  known  as 
the  De  Meules  property.  It  was  this  gentleman  and  his  as- 
sociates who  first  opened  up  the  turquoise  here  and  made  the 
district  famous. 

Some  magnificent  gems  were  taken  out  of  the  ground  at  a 
depth  not  exceeding  forty  feet,  which  proved  a  bonanza  for 
the  fortunate  owners. 

A  number  of  other  claims  have  been  located  and  partially 
developed;  but  nothing  has  been  found  so  valuable  as  what  De 
Meules  and  associates  discovered. 

Eureka  (Old  Hachita)  District. 

Some  turquoise  of  very  fine  quality  has  come  from  this 
district  in  the  past  years.  There  are  a  number  of  claims 
located  and  several  have  produced  some  very  fine  stones. 

Ancient  workings  in  one  or  two  places  exist  and  the  tur- 
quoise mines  here  are  in  all  probability  as  old  as  those  of  the 
Los  Cerrillos  and  Burro  mountain  districts. 


CHAPTER  XXXV. 


PETROLEUM  AND  ASPHALTUM  (Bitumen). 

Less  than  fifty  years  ago  the  value  of  petroleum  was  re- 
cognized only  for  its  medical  properties. 

The  year  1859  is  generally  recognized  as  the  birth  of  the 
oil  industry;  a  few  barrels  only  were  refined  for  use  in  the 
experimental  trade  of  the  country  at  that  time.  In  1902  the 
production  of  crude  petroleum  in  the  United  States  reached 
the  enormous  figures  of  88,277,310  barrels;  and  the  output  of 
the  world  for  that  year  aggregated  185,151,089  barrels.  The 
United  States  takes  the  lead  of  all  countries  in  the  produc- 
tion of  oil  with  Ohio  the  foremost  state  of  the  Union,  and  with 
Kansas  a  close  second. 

In  the  wild  stampede  for  gold  on  the  Pacific  slope  in  '49 
the  prospector  from  the  east  passed  over  hidden  treasures 
more  wonderful  and  far  greater  in  value,  than  any  gold  mines 
ever  found.  The  existence  of  petroleum  has  been  known 
from  the  earliest  times  and  is  alluded  to  in  the  Bible,  in 
Chapter  1,  Book  2,  of  the  Meccabees.  This  Biblical  allusion 
of  the  concealed  fires  of  the  priests  was  sought  out  two 
generations  later  at  the  time  of  the  prophet  Nehemiah,  and 
found  to  be  oil,  which  would  burst  into  flames  when  poured 
on  the  hot  sacrifical  stones,  used  at  that  time  in  religious 
ceremonies. 

Herodotus,  450  years  B.  C.,  speaks  of  a  small  river  which 
empties  into  the  Euphrates,  as  carrying  down  pieces  of 
bitumen  (asphalt)  which  was  collected  and  used  in  Babylon 
in  the  construction  of  buildings.  Similar  statements  refer- 
ing  to  bitumen  were  made  by  Diodorus,  Plutarchus  and 
Quintus  Curtius.  Bricks  and  slabs  of  marble  and  alabaster 
and  the  grand  Mosaic  pavements  of  the  ancient  cities  of 
Ninevah  and  Babylon  were  held  together  by  semi-fluid 
bitumen. 

The  early  Egyptians  recognized  the  uses  of  asphaltum  in 
many  ways,  such  as  in  the  calking  and  manufacturing  of 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS.  279 

vessels  and  especially  in  bandaging  the  dead  preparatory  to 
burial. 

Many  interesting  examples  of  the  uses  of  petroleum  and 
its  resulting  products  by  the  ancients  could  be  cited,  but 
lack  of  space  forbids  their  enumeration  in  this  abbreviated 
volume. 

Petroleum,  in  a  general  sense,  embraces  a  series  of  hydro- 
carbons limited  in  one  direction  by  a  gas  and  in  the  other  by 
a  solid.  It,  therefore,  is  seen  that  hydrocarbons  exist  under 
three  different  conditions,  viz: 

1.  Gaseous  (where  hydrogen  equivalents  exceed  or  equal 
those  of  carbon.) 

2.  Liquid  (where  hydrogen  equivalents  are  less  than  those 
of  carbon.) 

3.  Solid  (where  hydrogen  equivalents  are  still  further 
diminished.) 

Petroleum  in  the  United  States  is  classified  into  two  series, 
having  different  bases  as  follows : 

1.  Paraffine  series,  having  a  paraffine  base. 

2.  Olefine  series,  having  an  asphaltum  base. 

Russian  petroleum  consists  principally  of  the  naphthene 
series. 

In  Pennsylvania,  petroleum  coming  as  it  does  from  the 
older  rocks,  has  a  paraffine  base;  while  in  the  west,  in  the 
more  recent  formations,  it  usually  has  an  asphaltum  base. 

Indications  are  that  the  petroleums  of  New  Mexico  will 
generally  have  an  asphaltum  base. 

The  occurrence  of  petroleum  does  not  appear  to  be  confined 
to  any  particular  geological  horizon;  since  it  is  found  from  the 
lower  Silurian,  up  to  almost  the  latest  geological  epoch. 
Petroleum  in  its  nature  is  migratory  upward,  and  it  is  ques- 
tionable whetheranytrue  primary  deposits  exist.  The  genesis 
of  petroleum  appears  to  be  by  destructive  distillation  of 
vegetable  tissues  that  are  embodied  in  bituminous  shales. 
If  this  be  true,  it  could  not  have  remained  in  the  rocks  from 
which  it  was  formed;  it  therefore  would  necessarily  migrate 
and  would  thus  become  a  secondary  deposit. 

In  the  eastern  part  of  the  United  States  the  oil  bearing- 
strata  are  found  in  the  Palaeozoic  rocks;  but  in  the  west, 


280  NEW    MEXICO    MINES  AND   MINERALS. 

California  in  particular,  the  horizon  is  in  the  more  recent 
rocks  of  the  Miocene  epoch. 

Indications  of  petroleum  are  found  in  many  places  of  New 
Mexico;  yet,  no  locality  has  ever  produced  oil  in  any  com- 
mercial quantity. 

During  and  just  after  the  time  of  the  great  oil  excitement 
at  Beaumont,  Texas,  in  1900-2,  considerable  activity  was 
manifested  in  prospecting  for  oil  in  New  Mexico. 

A  number  of  companies  were  organized  and  wells  sunk  to 
various  depths  (some  quite  deep),  but  without  success. 

Indications  of  the  occurrence  of  oil  have  been  noted  in  the 
counties  of  Leonard  Wood,  Colfax,  Union,  McKinley,  Eddy, 
Lincoln,  Otero,  San  Juan,  Socorro  and  possibly  Luna  coun- 
ties. 

Northeast  of  Gallup  a  few  miles,  is  a  strong  seepage  of  oil, 
and  a  well  was  put  down  to  a  depth  of  900  feet,  without  any 
results.  A  second  well  was  sunk  by  another  company,  400 
feet  deep,  at  a  point  a  few  miles  southwest  of  Gallup,  in  Mc- 
Kinley county,  which  was  abandoned  as  fruitless.  Some 
work,  during  1902,  was  done  on  the  Pioneer  wells,  near  Farm- 
ington,  in  San  Juan  county,  with  no  results.  The  site  selected 
for  boring  was  near  the  place  where  natural  gas  had  previously 
been  struck  in  drilling  for  water.  In  Colfax  county,  southeast 
of  Raton,  on  the  Wilson  ranch  and  the  ranch  of  Thomas  Burns, 
a  hole  at  each  of  these  places  was  bored  to  the  depth  of  2,650 
feet  and  1,535  feet,  respectively,  but  each  well  was  finally 
abandoned,  without  getting  anything  more  than  a  strong 
odor  of  oil  from  the  bitumenous  shales.  The  names  of  the 
two  companies  were  the  Raton  Oil  &  Gas  Co.,  and  the  New 
Mexico  Oil  &  Gas  Co. 

At  each  of  the  above  ranches  there  are  springs  with  seep- 
ages of  petroleum  and  the  locations  seemed  to  be  decidedly 
favorable.  When  work  stopped  at  the  deeper  well  the  sand- 
stone horizon  of  the  Dakota  series  was  about  penetrated  by 
the  drill. 

A  number  of  oil  companies  were  organized,  which  pros- 
pected more  or  less  about  Santa  Rosa,  in  Leonard  Wood 
county,  during  1902. 

Of  these  latter  companies,  The  Newman  Oil  Company  pros- 
pected near  the  Pecos  river  and  reached  a  depth  of  more  than 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS.  281 

1.000  feet.  At  700  feet  a  small  oil  stratum  was  penetrated 
which  proved  too  small  to  give  results. 

The  Missouri  Oil  &  Asphaltum  Company  prospected  on  the 
Jordan  Plains,  about  twenty  miles  north  of  Santa  Rosa,  and 
the  Continental  Oil  &  Fuel  Company  also  did  some  work 
about  Santa  Rosa,  but  nothing  favorable  was  encountered 
during  the  time  of  operation.  On  the  Perea  land  grant,  a  few 
miles  north  of  Santa  Rosa,  a  splendid  bituminous  sandstone 
exists  in  apparently  large  quantities;  also,  near  by  on  Can- 
yoncito  creek  petroleum  oozes  out  of  the  earth  and  the  pro- 
duct is  used  by  the  natives  and  ranchers  for  axle  grease. 
Deposits  of  fire  clay  have  also  been  observed  in  this  locality. 

Hon.  W.  A.  Mclvers  of  Nogal,  who  represented  the  New 
Mexico  Oil  &  Development  Company,  found  indications  of 
the  existence  of  oil  between  the  head  of  the  Mai  Pais  and  the 
Gran  Quivira. 

Many  other  places  throughout  the  territory  are  known  to 
have  indications  of  petroleum,  that  have  never  been  investi- 
gated by  an  expert. 

While  the  efforts  of  prospectors,  so  far,  have  proved  futile 
in  developing  oil  in  New  Mexico,  it  by  no  means  should  en- 
tirely condemn  the  field. 

Since  petroleum  is  very  migratory  in  its  habits,  having  al- 
ways an  upward  tendency  in  its  movement,  its  source  may  be 
too  deep  seated  to  have  been  penetrated  by  the  bore-holes  in 
the  prospecting  performed. 

On  the  other  hand,  may  it  not  be  probable  that  the  petro- 
leum which  once  originally  existed,  has  long  since  been  dis- 
sipated, due  to  the  effect  of  the  numerous  eruptive  dikes  and 
laccolithic  sheets  to  which  this  particular  portion  of  the 
earth's  crust  has  been  subjected? 

Graphite. 

Deposits  of  this  material  occur  in  several  places  in  New 
Mexico;  the  quality,  usually,  is  rather  poor  and  of  a  semi- 
crystalline  character. 

The  most  extensive  occurrence  of  graphite  in  the  Territory, 
known  at  the  present  time,  is  in  the  vicinity  of  Raton;  this 
deposit  seems  to  possess  some  commercial  value  and  is  being 
worked  in  a  small  way.  Through  the  metamorphic  action  of 


282  NEW    MEXICO   MINES   AND   MINERALS. 

eruptive  dikes  and  laccoliths,  this  particular  seam,  at  one  time 
coal,  has  been  transformed  into  a  crystalline  variety  of 
graphite.  The  stratum  is  irregular  and  much  of  it  is  lacking 
at  certain  intervals,  which  necessarily  renders  the  vein 
pockety.  This  deposit  was  laid  down  and  is  contemporaneous 
with  the  extensive  coal  fields  of  Raton  and  southern.Colorado. 

At  the  east  end  of  Tijeras  canyon,  east  of  Albuquerque, 
near  Whitcomb's  spring,  quite  a  band  of  graphite,  presumably 
Cretaceous  is  observed,  which  has  been  thought  by  some  to 
be  coal  and  a  little  development  work  has  been  done  under 
that  supposition.  Work  at  the  time  of  the  present  writing  is 
being  conducted  by  Albuquerque  parties  in  this  vicinity,  and 
thirty  sacks  of  the  earthy  product  have  been  sent  to  the  Dixon 
Black  Lead  Crucible  Company  of  Jersey  City  for  analytical 
and  practical  tests. 

In  the  Cretaceous  sandstone  in  the  vicinity  of  Taos,  a  pros- 
pector began  development  of  a  band  of  graphite  which  he 
supposed  to  be  coal. 

Graphite  is  used  for  making  black  lead  crucibles,  the  lead 
for  pencils,  black  paint,  electrotypes  and  is  a  component  of 
the  best  of  lubricants  for  heavy  machinery. 


CHAPTER  XXXVI. 

RADIUM. 

Much,  of  late  has  been  written  and  said  concerning  the 
newly  discovered  and  wonderful  element,  radium. 

Many  erroneous  and  misleading  ideas  have  crept  into  the 
press  relative  to  its  nature,  occurrence  and  chemistry. 

The  writer,  at  various  times,  has  received  communications 
from  different  parts  of  the  territory,  announcing  the  dis- 
covery of  radium  or  that  a  "radium  mine7'  had  been  found. 

Still  other  inquiries  were  to  the  effect  of  ascertaining  how 
the  "mineral''  could  be  recognized  or  determined  by  the 
prospector. 

That  radio  active  substances  exist  in  certain  New  Mexican 
ores, can  scarcely  be  doubted;  and  for  the  benefit  of  the  pros- 
pector and  miner  it  would  be  well  for  him  to  understand  that 
no  direct  or  practical  method,  at  present,  can  be  outlined  to 
guide  him  in  the  field  in  detecting  such  elements  in  ores.  In 
a  general  way,  all  ores  of  uranium,  especially  pitch-blende, 
should  command  his  attention  in  his  search  for  radium  bear- 
ing substances. 

Radium  may  be  detected  by  impressions  made  on  a  photo- 
graphic plate;  the  time  of  exposure  varying  from  a  few  hours 
to  several  days;  owing  to  the  quantity  of  radium  present. 
During  1896  M.  Henri  Becquerel  discovered  a  certain  form 
of  energy  in  potassium  uranium  sulphate,  which  has  since 
borne  the  name  of  Becquerel  rays,  in  honor  of  the  discoverer. 

In  1898,  Monsieur  and  Madame  Curie  announced  the  dis- 
covery of  polonium  and  radium,  and  during  the  same  year 
C.  C.  Schmidt  discovered  radio-activity  in  the  metal  thorium 
and  its  salts. 

M.  Debierne,  in  1899,  found  a  third  radio  active  substance 
in  pitch-blende  and  gave  it  the  name  of  actinium. 

There  seems  to  be  three  radiations  given  off  by  radium, 
and  they  have  been  called  the  alpha,  beta  and  gamma  rays, 
respectively.  If  a  strong  magnet  be  placed  near  a  beam  of 


284  NEW    MEXICO    MINES  AND   MINERALS. 

radium  which  has  been  isolated  by  means  of  lead-screens,  it 
is  found  that  the  alpha  ray  is  slightly  repelled,  the  beta  ray 
is  attracted  and  the  gamma  ray  is  not  affected. 

The  alpha  ray  is  believed  to  be  identical  with  the  annode 
ray  which  is  obtained  when  an  electric  current  is  driven 
through  a  high  vacuum  tube.  If  this  be  the  case  the  atoms 
are  charged  positively — driven  with  a  velocity  of  15,000  miles 
per  second.  The  beta  ray  has  been  definitely  proven  to  be 
the  same  as  the  cathode  ray  of  the  vacuum  tube;  its  material 
particles  are  thus  negatively  charged.  The  particles  com- 
posing this  ray  weigh  the  one  one-thousandth  of  an  atom  of 
hydrogen  and  travel  at  the  rate  of  90,000  miles  per  second. 

The  gamma  ray  is  analagous  and  seems  identical  to  the  X- 
ray,  the  true  nature  of  which  has  not  yet  been  determined. 

As  yet,  radium  in  its  pure  state  has  never  been  separated 
from  its  associated  compounds,  excepting  in  very  thin  films 
by  electrolysis,  but  is  obtained  either  as  a  chloride  or  bro- 
mide. 

Monsieur  and  Madame  Curie  obtained  the  element  as  a 
chloride  with  barium;  afterward  the  chloride  of  radium  was 
separated  from  the  barium  ehloride  by  the  slow  process  of 
crystallization. 

Anhydrous  radium  bromide  was  first  obtained  by  a  Ger- 
man chemist;  this  process  is  somewhat  more  advantageous 
than  that  of  the  Curies. 

The  third  method  is  the  electrolytic  process,  which  has 
the  advantage  of  being  very  much  quicker  than  the  purely 
analytic  methods,  and  may  entirely  supersede  them  after  the 
nature  of  the  element  is  more  thoroughly  understood. 

As  a  matter  of  comparison,  it  may  be  said  that  more  gold 
exists  in  the  sea  water  than  radium  in  pitch-blende. 

Since  the  discovery  of  radium  up  to  April  1,  1904,  there 
perhaps,  has  never  been  a  pound  of  its  different  grades  pro- 
duced altogether.  At  present,  ores  of  uranium  are  the  kinds 
most  generally  in  demand;  since  they  are  more  abundant  and 
usually  contain  a  greater  quantity  of  radium  or  possess  a 
higher  degree  of  radio-activity  than  most  other  ores. 

Uraninite  or  pitch-blende  is  the  ore  from  which  radium 
was  first  obtained  by  the  Curies. 

Later  research,  however,  reveals  the  fact  that  this  subtile 


NEW   MEXICO   MINES  AND  MINERALS.  285 

element  is  associated  with  a  very  large  number  of  ores,  more 
or  less  familiar  to  the  miner  and  prospector.  In  fact  the 
chief  difficulty  is  not  in  the  finding  of  radio-active  bodies,  but 
substances  that  are  not  radio  active;  since,  above  the  absolute 
zero  everything  in  nature  seems  to  radiate. 

It  is  not  to  be  understood  that  radium  has  actually  been 
found  in  all  the  minerals  named  below,  but  they  have  become 
recognized  distinctly  radio-active,  due  to  their  absorbent  quali- 
ties of  radial  emissions. 

Uraninite  (pitch-blende^ Uranium 

Carnotite Alunite 

Columbite Thorium  (compounds) 

Torberite     Monazite 

Autunite Tantalite 

Fergusonite Euxenite 

Samarskite Orangeite 

Cleveite Polycrase 

Xenotime     Aeschynite 

Sipilite Niobite 

Many  solid  bodies  of  various  descriptions  become  radio- 
active, when  placed  in  a  closed  vessel  with  one  of  the  radio- 
active salts  of  barium,  or  what  would  be  still  more  effective, 
to  immerse  the  body  or  substance  in  a  solution  of  such  salt. 

Copper,  wax,  lead,  platinum,  water,  glass,  etc.,  will  partake 
of  the  radial  emissions  by  absorption,  when  brought  into  the 
presence  of  such  radio-active  salts. 

This  induced  radiation  is  identical  in  character  with  that  of 
the  original  salt. 

If  a  current  of  electricity  be  passed  through  a  hermetically 
sealed  tube  containing  a  gas  under  pressure,  the  same  would 
become  luminous  should  the  pressure  be  sufficiently  reduced ; 
air  at  33-milHmeters  pressure  would  become  luminous. 

Should  a  radio-active  substance  be  held  sufficiently  near 
such  tube,  luminosity  would  begin  at  a  higher  pressure, 
which  for  air  is  44  millimeters.  It  is  observed  that  the  color 
of  the  light  varies  in  the  two  cases. 

The  "miracle  of  radium*'  is  its  power  to  perpetually  emit 
heat  and  light  without  sustaining  any  apparent  loss  in  weight 
or  energy.  Under  the  generally  accepted  theory  of  the  con- 
servation of  energy,  radium  seems  to  be  an  exception  to  this 
law  of  physics. 


286  NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS. 

It  is  interesting  to  note,  as  before  stated,  that  the  emission 
of  caloric  energy  seems  to  be  perpetual  and  according  to 
Mme.  Curie's  calculation,  at  a  rate  of  about  90  centigrade 
calories  per  gram  per  hour.  Such  emission  of  heat  at  this 
rate,  according  to  Lord  Kelvin  in  a  recent  lecture  before  the 
science  branch  of  the  British  association,  should  it  continue 
for  10,000  hours,  would  be  sufficient  to  raise  the  temperature 
of  900,000  grams  of  water  through  one  degree  centigrade. 
It,  therefore,  would  seem  utterly  impossible  for  this  energy 
to  come  from  a  single  gram  of  radium  in  10,000  hours,  with- 
out being  replenished  from  some  outward  source. 

In  view  of  this  fact  it  is  not  improbable  that  any  losses  of 
energy  suffered  by  radial  emissions  may  be  supplied  by 
ethereal  waves. 

An  examination  into  the  atomic  weights  of  the  rarer  ele- 
ments reveals  the  fact  that  they  are  singularly  high;  at  least, 
their  atomic  weights  exceed  those  generally  of  the  more  com- 
mon or  plentiful  elements. 

The  atomic  weight  of  radium  as  determined  by  Mme.  Curie 
is  given  at  225;  the  supposition  is  that  this  is  too  low.  The  be- 
havior of  this  element  is  such  as  to  give  us  reasons  to  infer 
that  atoms  must  have  and  do  reach  a  limit  of  stability.  After 
this  limit  is  reached,  dissolution  or  atomic  decay  of  the  ele- 
mental substance  takes  place. 

Recent  experiments  have  partly  confirmed  this  statement, 
wherein  it  has  been  shown  that  the  emanations  from  radium 
decompose  and  pass  into  helium.  The  tendency  of  nature  is 
then  to  reduce  elements  of  high  atomic  weights  to  those  of 
lower  atomic  weights.  Similarly,  complex  molecules  in  the 
organic  world  tend  to  break  up  into  simpler  substances.  The 
processes  of  life  elaborate  complex  material  bodies,  but  as 
soon  as  those  processes  cease  there  is  resolution  into  simpler 
products  accompanied  by  a  loss  of  energy.  We  ask  the 
question,  is  this  transformation  a  kindred  process  in  the  in- 
organic world,  and  are  the  elements  of  higher  atomic  weight 
forever  slowly  disintegrating  in  favor  of  the  elements  of 
lower  atomic  weight?  Should  this  be  true,  the  dream  of  the 
alchemist  may,  after  all,  be  realized. 

In  the  great  laboratory  of  nature,  the  atomic  decay  of 
uranium  may  produce  platinum,  palladium  or  gold;  and  these 


UNIVERSITY 

OF 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS.  2*7 

would  break  down  into  copper  or  iron,  and  lead  \vould 
decompose  into  silver. 

If  the  forces  of  nature  could  be  reversed  by  artificial  means, 
copper  or  silver  might  be  transmuted  into  gold  and  elements 
of  still  higher  atomic  weights. 

Who  knows  but  the  discovery  of  radium  has  led  us  into  the 
vestibule  of  the  infinite  and  demonstrated  the  unity  of  matter; 
perchance,  it  is  the  grasping  of  the  secret  key  of  nature  which 
unlocks  the  mighty  mysteries  of  the  physical  universe? 

It  is  too  early  to  even  conjecture  the  possibility  of  the  effect 
which  radium  may  produce  in  the  treatment  of  disease. 

Dr.  Rollin  H.  Stevens,  of  Detroit,  Michigan,  has  succeeded 
in  provising  a  method  in  the  treatment  of  cancer,  by  which  no 
danger  from  burns  is  experienced,  as  was  formerly  the  case 
in  the  X-ray  and  earlier  radium  methods. 

The  method  pursued  by  Dr.  Stevens  is  to  induce  radio- 
active principles  to  water  by  placing  in  the  vessel  containing 
water,  a  sealed  radium  tube  which  imparts  its  rays  to  the 
tiuid  of  absorption.  Radio-active  water  is  thus  produced, 
having  a  most  powerful  effect.  Injected  into  cancers  this 
water  stopped  all  pain  within  ten  minutes  time.  Apparently 
this  method  of  treatment  is  curing  every  case  in  which  the 
water  has  been  applied.  In  each  instance  under  this  treat- 
ment the  cancer  has  been  rapidly  reduced  and  diminished 
constantly  in  size,  resulting  in  a  permanent  cure. 

The  possibility  of  natural  or  mineral  springs  waters  becom- 
ing charged  with  radio-active  elements  through  absorption 
and  otherwise,  has  been  suggested  under  the  chapter  on 
mineral  waters. 

Radio-activity  defined,  means  the  number  of  times  a  piece 
of  radium  is  radio-active  stronger  than  the  influence  of  a 
piece  of  uranium,  that  is  to  say  a  substance  has  a  radio- 
activity of  500  when  its  radial  properties  are  500  times 
greater  than  uranium. 

On  March  10,  1904,  an  importer  of  radium  states  that 
this  product  has  advanced  in  price  $4,200,000  per  pound  dur- 
ing the  last  two  days.  The  commercial  rate  last  week  was 
$*.  400,000  now  it  is  $12,600,000. 


288  NEW    MEXICO    MINES  AND   MINERALS. 

Notes  on  Some  of  the  Rarer  Metals. 

Platinum  has  a  specific  gravity  about  the  same  as  that  of 
gold.  It  was  valued  at  $18.50  per  ounce,  the  market  price, 
March  17,  1904.  It  is  the  most  useful  of  the  platinum  group 
of  metals,  which  embraces  palladium,  rhodium,  ruthenium, 
iridium,  osmium  and  platinum.  The  three  first  are  of  little 
importance  commercially. 

Iridium,  worth  more  than  $780  a  pound,  is  the  hardest 
metal  known  and  is  used  to  tip  gold  pens. 

Palladium  which  has  the  smallest  coefficient  of  dilatation, 
is  used  for  the  mounting  of  astronomical  instruments.  The 
standard  meter  of  France  is  made  of  palladium.  The  pure 
metal  costs  $4.82  a  pound. 

Lithium,  worth  more  than  $1,100  a  pound,  is  used  only  in 
medicine,  its  salts  being  valuable  in  rheumatic  affections. 

Tungsten,  worth  30  cents  a  pound,  is  largely  used  in 
metallurgy  and  gives  to  steel,  qualities  similar  to  those  im- 
parted by  molybdenum. 

Molybdenum,  worth  $1.44  a  pound,  is  used  in  metallurgy. 
Molybdenum  steel  possesses  the  rare  quality  of  preserving 
its  hardness  even  when  heated  to  redness. 

Selenium,  which  has  the  curious  property  of  losing  its 
resistance  to  the  electric  current  under  the  influence  of 
light,  is  used  in  the  telelectroscope  and  is  worth  $22  a  pound. 

Uranium,  worth  $86  a  pound,  is  used  in  the  glass  and 
porcelain  industries.  It  has  been  found  that  uranium  carbide 
is  superior  to  nickel  or  tungsten  in  the  manufacture  of  high 
grade  steel. 

Vanadium  oxidizes  in  air  with  great  difficulty,  melts  at 
2,000  degrees  and  becomes  red  hot  in  hydrogen.  Neither 
hydrochloric  acid  nor  nitric  acid  attacks  it.  It  costs  $592  a 
pound  and  is  used  in  coloring  glass  and  in  making  indelible 
inks. 


CHAPTER  XXXVII. 


MINERAL  WATERS. 

In  dealing  with  the  waters  of  New  Mexico  no  attempt  is 
made  toward  their  proper  classification. 

"Mineral  water''  in  its  broadest  sense  is  water  of  any  kind 
found  in  nature;  since  water  itself  is  a  mineral  and  is  never 
found  absolutely  pure  in  its  natural  state. 

The  dissolving  power  of  water  is  very  great  and  it  is  due  to 
this  property  that  all  water  in  its  natural  state  is  more  or  less 
contaminated  with  the  material  substances  through  which  it 
courses. 

Dr.  Charles  Daubeney,  in  his  Sixth  Report  of  the  British 
Association  for  the  Advancement  of  Science  says:  "The  term 
mineral  water  in  its  most  extended  sense  comprises  every 
modification  existing  in  nature  of  that  universally  diffused 
fluid,  whether  considered  with  reference  to  its  sensible 
properties  or  to  its  action  upon  life."  Any  waters  containing 
a  large  amount  of  mineral  matter  or  characterized  by  an 
unusual  degree  of  heat,  and  having  a  certain  therapeutic 
effect  upon  the  animal  economy  are  usually  classed  as 
"mineral  waters/' 

It  is  not  within  the  sphere  of  chemical  analysis  to  explain 
in  all  cases  the  therapeutic  effects  of  any  particular  water  in 
the  cure  of  certain  diseases;  for  many  of  the  springs  which 
have  acquired  reputations  for  their  medicinal  virtues  are  not 
so  highly  mineralized  as  some  of  the  ordinary  potable  waters. 

The  cause  of  this  must  be  accounted  for  in  some  other 
way.  It  is  not  improbable  that  many  of  the  famous  mineral 
springs  are  charged  to  a  certain  degree  with  substances  of 
radio-activity,  which  would  account  for  the  beneficial  effect 
experienced  in  certain  ailments.  It  would  be  interesting  to 
have  experiments  conducted  along  this  line  with  the  waters 
of  some  of  the  more  prominent  springs.  The  glow  of  the 
ocean  water  at  night  observed  in  the  rear  of  a  moving  vessel  is, 
perhaps,  not  fully  explained  by  contributing  the  phenomenon 
as  wholly  due  to  phosphorus. 


290  NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS. 

It  is  the  opinion  of  the  writer  that  the  medicinal  virtues  of 
the  waters  of  many  springs  are  due  to  the  presence  of  some 
of  the  more  subtle  elements  that  have,  hitherto,  escaped  the 
search  of  the  chemist  in  the  ordinary  analytic  methods  of 
analysis. 

This  assertion  is  borne  out  by  the  fact  that  a  few  of  the  most 
noted  mineral  waters  contain  less  solid  matter  than  is  found 
in  some  of  the  common  springs  and  potable  waters;  notwith- 
standing the  fact  that  the  same  observed  elemental  compounds 
exist  in  each.  Owing  to  the  comparatively  recent  geological 
structure  of  the  rock  system  in  New  Mexico,  most  all  of  the 
waters  of  every  description  carry  much  matter  in  solution; 
inasmuch,  the  formations  and  soils  have  not  been  leached  to 
the  extent  as  that  of  the  eastern  and  central  parts  of  the 
United  States.  Therefore,  the  waters  of  the  Territory  may 
be  called  with  propriety  "volcanic  waters;"  this  term  would 
especially  apply  to  the  thermal  springs. 

Ojo  Caliente  (Hot  Springs). 

These  springs  take  rank  with  any  of  the  celebrated  springs 
in  the  United  States  and,  perhaps,  in  the  world  for  their 
marvelous  curative  powers. 

Their  waters  have  long  since  been  a  balm  for. suffering 
humanity;  tradition  points  to  their  visitation  by  the  aboriginal 
tribes  of  the  southwest  long  before  the  occupation  of  the 
country  by  the  Spaniards.  Some  of  the  most  ancient  ruins 
of  the  southwest  are  found  in  the  valley  and  on  the  contiguous 
mesas  to  these  springs.  A  later  and  more  extensive  city  of 
the  Pueblos  is  in  evidence  from  ruins  found  on  the  mesa  on 
the  west  side  of  the  valley  about  half  a  mile  south  of  the 
springs. 

This  Pueblo  seems  to  be  the  Phoenix  which  has  arisen  from 
the  debris  of  a  still  older  city;  thus  the  history  of  those  prim- 
itive people  exists  only  in  the  fragmentary  ruins  that  have 
defied  the  elements  to  the  present  time.  It  is  claimed  that 
Cabeza  de  Vaca,  the  discoverer  of  New  Mexico,  in  1534,  visited 
and  named  these  springs  Ojo  Caliente,  which  name  they  have 
ever  since  borne. 

This  is  quite  probable,  inasmuch  as  this  unfortunate  Spani- 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES    AND    MINERALS.  291 

ard  became  noted  among  the  aborigines,  during  his  wander 
ings,  as  a  "healer  of  the  sick/' 

Many  superstitions  and  traditions  exist  in  the  neighboring 
Indian  tribes  today,  concerning  the  efficacy  of  these  waters. 
The  habit  of  bringing  their  sick  to  these  springs  every  year 
is  nothing  more  than  the  inculcated  practice  of  their  long  time 
custom  of  past  centuries.  Brush  houses  are  erected  along 
the  valley  where  the  sick  remain  until  a  cure  is  effected. 

One  of  their  methods  of  treatment  of  rheumatic  and  blood 
disease,  besides  drinking  the  water  and  bathing,  is  as  unique 
as  it  is  effective.  A  "sweat-house"  of  adobe  mud  is  first  erected 
which  has  the  appearance  of  a  Dutch  oven;  fires  are  built 
near  by  and  rocks  heated  which  are  placed  inside  the  sweat- 
house.  Blankets  are  laid  over  these  warm  stones  and  the 
patient,  after  taking  some  of  the  salts  from  the  evaporated 
water,  is  put  in  the  sweat-house  until  he  perspires  freely. 
This  is  repeated  most  every  day  until  the  patient  is  well. 
Cabeza  de  Vaca  carried  the  news  of  the  virtues  of  this  won- 
derful water  to  Mexico,  and  it  was  thought  by  many  at  that 
time  to  be  the  "fountain  of  youth."  Many  of  the  syphilitic 
troops  of  the  Coronado  expedition  were  said  to  have  been 
cured  at  these  springs. 

Some  fifty  years  after  the  expedition  of  Coronado,  a  terri- 
ble blood  disease  spread  among  the  Pueblo  Indians  with  such 
fury  and  fatality,  that  the  Spanish  priests  erected  a  church 
on  the  plaza,  just  east  of  the  springs,  in  the  year  1590,  to 
accommodate  the  crowds  of  sufferers  who  sought  spiritual 
comfort  while  trying  the  efficacy  of  the  springs.  No  doubt 
this  great  affliction  wrought  on  the  simple  Pueblos  was  due 
to  the  Spanish  soldiers  who  tainted  the  blood  of  the  aborigi- 
nes at  the  time  of  Coronado.  This  ancient  church  is  still 
standing  in  a  fairly  good  state  of  preservation.  As  near  as 
can  be  learned  these  springs  were  first  visited  by  Americans 
in  1*10. 

The  dissolving  power  of  this  water  is  very  great;  hence, 
for  stone  in  the  bladder,  gravel  or  any  calcareous  affections 
it  is  highly  recommended.  Good  effects  are  produced  in 
disease  of  the  joints  and  muscles  from  electric  mud  baths,  by 
applying  mud  poultices  to  the  affected  parts. 

There  are  four  of  these  springs  in   a  very  small  compass, 


NEW    MEXICO   MINES  AND   MINERALS.  293 

and  each  one  is  peculiarly  adapted  for  the  cure  of  particular 
diseases. 

Physicians  recommend  the  water  especially  for  rheuma- 
tism, kidney,  stomach  and  blood  disorders.  The  temperature 
of  these  springs  varies  from  90°  to  122°  Fah. 

The  following  are  analyses  of  the  waters  as  reported  from 
the  Division  of  Chemistry  of  the  Department  of  the  Interior: 

Constituents.                                   Spring*  No.  1.  Spring*  No.  2. 

Sodium  carbonate 196.95  184.29 

Sodium  and  magnesium  carbonates.                6.25  5.40 

Lithium  carbonate .21  .16 

Iron  carbonate    trace  trace 

Sodium  sulphate 13.60  19.33 

Potassium  sulphate 5.17  5.34 

Sodium  chloride 38.03  39.78 

Silica trace  trace 

Parts  in  100,000.          Totals....  200.21  254.30 

*OscarLoew,  Analyst,  1875. 

The  third  spring  of  Ojo  Caliente  is  the  largest,  and  is 
properly  classed  as  a  chalybeate  spring,  due  to  the  presence 
of  the  large  percentage  of  iron  carbonate. 

Its  waters  contain  1,686.84  grains  of  alkaline  salts  to  the 
gallon,  which  is  extremely  high. 

The  authority  of  this  analysis  could  not  be  learned,  but  is 
supposed  to  have  been  made  by  the  U.  S.  Geological  Sur- 
vey: 

Constituents.  Spring  No.  3 

Iron  Spring. 

Sodium  carbonate 196 . 95 

Iron  carbonate 20. 12 

Arsenic* 10.08 

Magnesium  carbonate 6.10 

Silicic  acid 4 . 10 

Calcium  carbonate 4 . 20 

Sodium  chloride 40.03 

Lithium  carbonate 1 . 22 

Potassium    sulphate 5.29 

Parts  in    100,000.     Total 288.09 

The  state  of  oxidation  is  not  designated. 


294  NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS. 

The  fourth  and  last  spring  of  the  group  is  the  celebrated 
Lithia  spring,  and  known  as  the  new  spring;  the  following  is 
the  analysis: 

Constituents.  Spring  No.  4* 

(New  Spring) 

Lithium  chloride 20.9 

Potassium  chloride 59 . 9 

Sodium  chloride  305.5 

Potassium  Iodide trace'? 

Sodium   arsenate trace 

Sodium  borate 5.4 

Sodium  nitrate trace 

Sodium  sulphate 223 . 3 

Sodium  carbonate , 1846.9 

Ammonium  carbona  te trace 

Calcium  phosphate  .3 

Calcium  fluoride 10.7 

Calcium  carbonate 43 . 0 

Barium  carbonate trace 

Strontium  carbonate 2.4 

Magnesium  carbonate 33 . 2 

Silica 60.2 

Iron  oxide 1.6 

Alumina .5 

Carbonic  oxide 775 . 6 

Parts  in  1,000,000.     Total 3389.4 

*F.  W.  Clark,  Chief  Chemist. 

Traces  of  potassium  oxide,  sodium  arsenote,  sodium  nitrate,  ammo- 
nium carbonate  and  barium  carbonate. 

The  chemist  also  notes  that  no  organic  matter  is  present 
and  that  the  state  of  oxidation  of  the  iron  is  unknown,  since 
the  iron  was  found  deposited  as  sediment  in  the  bottles. 

The  writer's  opinion  concerning  the  state  of  the  iron  of  the 
two  last  springs,  is  that  it  exists  as  ferrous  carbonate  in  the 
earth;  under  released  pressure,  on  reaching  the  surface,  the 
carbon  dioxide  escapes,  rendering  the  iron  ferrous  oxide, 
which  immediately  passes  to  the  ferric  state  on  coming  in 
contact  wyith  the  air. 

Thecombined  flow  of  these  springs  will  approximate  300,000 
gallons  in  twenty-four  hours. 

Owing  to  the  comparatively  recent  volcanic  disturbances  in 
Taos  county,  geologically  speaking,  other  thermal  springs  in 
this  region  are  known.  The  Wamsley  hot  springs  are  gain- 


( 


NEW    MEXICO   MINES  AND   MINERALS.  295 

ing  some  reputation  for  their  beneficial  effects  on  the  animal 
economy. 

These  springs  occur  in  the  deep  gorge  of  the  Rio  Grande, 
just  below  the  toll  bridge  on  the  road  leading  f  rom  Taos  to 
Tres  Piedras.  This  water  is  little  more  than  luke-warm  and 
very  similar  to  the  warm  springs  at  Glen-woody  camp,  about 
eighteen  miles  below.  It  is  observed  that  the  flow  from  each 
of  these  springs  is  from  the  west  and  on  that  side  of  the  river. 

Faywood  Hot  Springs. 

Prominent  among  the  mineral  springs  of  New  Mexico  and 
the  southwest  that  have  become  noted  for  their  curative  prop- 
erties, is  the  celebrated  Faywood  Hot  Springs  of  eastern 
Grant  county. 

This  spring  flows  from  the  top  of  a  mound  or  truncated 
cone,  which  it  has  built  up  out  of  calcareous  matter  and 
silicious  sinter.  This  conical  shaped  mound  rises  to  a  height 
of  nearly  forty  feet  above  the  surrounding  plain.  For  this 
type  of  springs  it  is  representative  and  compares  favorably 
with  some  of  those  at  Yellowstone  Park  and  Iceland. 

The  reservoir  or  surface  end  of  the  geyser  tube  is  about 
fifteen  feet  in  diameter  and  is  said  to  have  been  sounded 
to  a  depth  of  six  hundred  feet;  the  truth  of  the  latter  state- 
ment is  much  to  be  doubted. 

In  1893,  A.  R.  Graham  installed  a  large  pump  and  lowered 
the  water  in  this  caldron,  in  order  to  cement  the  sides  and 
prevent  leakage  and  thereby  cause  the  water  to  be  elevated  so 
it  would  flow  out  of  the  top  of  the  mound.  The  walls  of  the 
geyser  tube  were  found  to  be  quite  uneven  and  jagged  and  on 
some  of  these  projections  were  found  many  interesting 
archaeological  relics  which  had  either  fallen  in  by  accident  or 
on  purpose. 

Several  stone  hammers,  flint  and  bone  implements,  copper 
spoons,  and  earthen  vessels  were  found;  and  last  but  not 
least,  the  bones  of  human  beings  were  taken  out.  The  skull 
of  one  of  the  poor  wretches  who  had  either  fallen  or  been 
forced  into  this  boiling  caldron,  is  in  the  Whitehall  collection 
at  the  springs  hotel,  where  also,  may  be  seen  a  number  of  the 
other  curios  taken  from  this  frightful  vent. 

On  a  visit  to  the  springs  by  the  writer,  May  3,  1903,  and  in 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS.  297 

examining  the  pile  of  debris  which  was  taken  from  the  vent 
almost  a  complete  lo\ver  jaw  bone  of  a  human  with  the  full 
quota  of  teeth  was  found  and  a  number  of  flint  implements, 
belonging  to  the  stone  age. 

The  action  of  the  hot  alkali  water  had  boiled  out  every  trace 
of  organic  tissue  from  the  bones  and  bleached  them  almost 
perfectly  white.  From  the  foregoing  it  is  evident  that  this 
spring  had  been  known  by  the  aborigines  and  may  have  been 
used  for  inflicting  the  death  penalty  on  the  more  unfortunate 
members  of  their  tribe.  Prom  the  nature  of  many  of  the 
articles  found  as  well  as  the  human  bones,  it  would  appear 
that  the  more  plausible  theory  of  their  presence  in  the  vent 
is  that  they  had  fallen  in  by  accident,  during  visitations  of  the 
sick  in  search  of  health. 

C.  C.  Conrad,  the  man  in  charge  of  the  bath  house,  accounts 
for  one  of  the  skeletons,  at  least,  in  the  following  bit  of 
frontier  history:  Conrad  said  while  in  Silver  City  several 
years  ago  he  met  an  old  soldier  who  exhibited  a  diary  which 
he  had  kept  during  his  service  in  the  army  dating  back  to 
l^Tio.  On  one  occasion  he  was  detailed  as  one  of  a  cavalry 
squad  from  Fort  Selden  to  warn  an  old  Dutch  settler  and  his 
wife,  who  were  then  living  a  short  distance  to  the  west  of  the 
hot  spring,  of  a  band  of  Apache  Indians  headed  that  way. 
The  cavalry  troops  camped  that  night  at  the  spring  and  were 
reinforced  there  by  a  party  from  Pinos  Altos.  About  day- 
light, not  aware  of  the  presence  of  the  soldiers,  the  band  of 
savages  swooped  down  from  the  adjacent  hills,  expecting  to 
surprise  the  Dutch  family.  The  suprise  came  the  other  way, 
for  the  cunning  savages  met  with  a  warm  reception  by  a  volley 
from  the  soldiers.  One  Indian  fell  wounded  near  the  spring; 
the  others  fled  in  disorder.  A  soldier  near  by  picked  up  the 
wounded  Indian  and  thrust  him  into  the  boiling  caldron 
before  any  one  could  interfere.  The  soldier  was  court- 
martialed  for  this  cruel  offence,  but  was  acquitted. 

The  water  of  FaywTood  hob  spring  is  alkaline  and  has  a 
temperature  of  14iir-  Fahrenheit;  it  has  as  high  a  temperature 
as  any  spring  in  New  Mexico,  with  two  or  three  exceptions. 
At  one  time  this  spring  may  have  been  a  geyser  and  spouted 
intermittently  similar  in  manner  to  those  of  Iceland  and  the 
Yellowstone'Park.  Q  Its  capacity  per  hour  is  6,000  gallons. 


298  NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS. 

An  analysis  made  by  Professor  Arthur  Goss,  Chemist  of 
the  College  of  Agriculture  and  Mechanic  Arts,  Mesilla  Park, 
New  Mexico,  shows  one  gallon  of  the  water  to  contain  the 
following  solids : 

Constituents.  Grains. 

Lime  (CaO ) 4 . 50 

Magnesia  (MgO)   1 .4(5 

Soda(Na2O) 11.17 

Potassa  (K2O) 1.52 

Iron  and  Alumina  (FesOs,  A12O3) 1.28 

Silica  (  Si02 ) 4 . 10 

Sulphates  (  SO3) 4.21 

Carbonate  (CO2)   9.98 

Chlorides  ( Cl) 1 . 77 

39.99 

Less  oxygen  equivalent  of  Cl .40 

Total  solids 39.59 

The  hypothetical  combinations  were  not  calculated. 

This  water  is  especially  noted  for  stomach  and  kidney 
troubles.  Rheumatism  yields  to  the  sweat  baths;  while  in 
skin  and  blood  diseases  some  remarkable  cures  are  reported. 

Las  Vegas  Hot  Springs. 

These  springs  are  perhaps  the  most  widely  known  of  any 
in  New  Mexico;  the  place  has  been  famous  as  a  resort,  even 
before  the  advent  of  the  Santa  Fe  Railway. 

There  are  forty  of  these  springs  in  number,  all  of  which 
are  situated  in  a  very  circumscribed  area. 

Many  archaeological  relics,  such  as  stone-axes,  pottery, 
flint  and  bone  instruments  have  been  found  in  the  immediate 
vicinity  of  the  springs  and  in  connection  with  near  by  ancient 
rains  of  a  prehistoric  people.  It  is,  therefore,  evident  that 
the  Europeans  were  not  the  first  people  to  drink  and  bath  in 
the  waters  from  these  springs. 

Mud  baths  and  poultices,  for  swollen  joints,  due  to  gout  and 
rheumatic  affections,  from  the  black  tenacious  mud  about  the 
springs,  have  proven  very  efficacious. 

The  beautiful  scenery  and  mountain  air  in  connection  with 
the  water,  always  produce  beneficial  effects,  provided  the 
patient's  vitality  has  not  previously  been  exhausted,  on  reach- 
ing the  springs. 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS. 


299 


Water  from  different    springs    varies   from   75     to  140 
Fahrenheit;  the  character  is  alkaline-saline. 

The  following  are  analyses  of  four  of  the  springs  as  made 
in  1875  by  Oscar  Loew,  for  the  Department  of  the  Interior: 


Constituents. 

Hot 
Spring. 

Spring 
No.  1. 

Spring 
No.  2. 

Spring 
No.  3. 

Sodium  carbonate  
Calcium  carbonate  
Magnesium  carbonate. 
Sodium  sulphate  

120  00 
j-    13.75 
5.26 

1.72 
9.08 
14.12 

1.17 
10.63 
15.93 

5.00 
11.41 
16  27 

Sodium  chloride     

6.41 

27.26 

24  37 

27  34 

Silica     

trace 

1.04 

trace 

2  51 

Potassa  .... 

trace 

trace 

trace 

]  jithia.         .         

stron^  trace 

strong  trace 

stron0"  trace 

Parts  in  100.000.  Totals. 

145  42 

53.22 

52.10 

62.53 

Jemez  Hot  Springs. 

At  the  time  of  Coronado's  expedition  the  Jemez  country 
was  a  thriving,  populous  province.  Many  large  pueblos  then 
existed,  which  were  visited  by  several  of  the  captains  of  the 
Spanish  army  at  that  time.  It  seems  that  the  prehistoric 
races  knew  that  certain  medicinal  virtues  existed  in  many  of 
the  volcanic  waters,  which  accounts  for  the  selection  of  con- 
venient sites,  near  such  waters,  of  a  number  of  their  villages. 

There  are  two  groups  of  these  springs;  they  are  in  San 
Diego  canyon,  and  are  designated  by  the  upper  and  lower 
groups.  The  upper  group  consists  of  forty  springs;  the 
temperature  of  the  water  ranges  from  70  to  105C  Fah.  This 
group  is  about  fourteen  miles  above  Jemez,  in  Sandoval 
county. 

The  lower  group  embraces  ten  springs  and  the  temper- 
ature varies  from  94°  to  168 :  Pah.  The  temperature  of  one 
of  these  springs  is  the  highest  in  the  territory,  insofar  as 
present  information  goes.  The  waters  of  both  groups  are 
saline : 


Constituents. 

Sodium  carbonate 

Calcium  carbonate 

Magnesium  c^bonate. . . 


Geyser.        Spring  No.  3.        Spring 


.0641 
.0103 


.0300 
.0240 


n  upper  group. 
.0219 
.0548 
.0057 


300  NEW   MEXICO   MINES  AND   MINERALS. 

Iron  carbonate .0002                       

Sodium  sulphate . 0035            .  0059 

Calcium  sulphate trace  .0262                         

Sodium  chloride 1622  .1508  .2642 

Silica trace  .0010  .0201 

Potassa trace  trace  trace 

Lithia trace  trace  trace 

Phosphoric  acid trace 

Parts  in  100.     Totals....  .2401  .2322  .3726 

San  Ysidro  Spring. 

San  Ysidro  spring  is  near  Jemez  and  is  one  of  the  results 
of  the  volcanic  conditions  in  the  Jemez  country. 

It  is  classed  as  one  of  the  mineral  waters  of  the  territory 
and  is  considered  to  be  important  by  many  in  its  medicinal 
virtues.  The  following  analysis  of  this  water  was  made  by 
Oscar  Loew  in  1875,  under  the  supervision  of  the  Department 
of  the  Interior: 

Calcium  carbonate 0670 

Magnesium  carbonate 0243 

Iron  carbonate 0008 

Sodium  sulphate 1639 

Sodium  chloride 3072 

Silica trace 

Patassa trace 

Lithia trace 

Parts  in  100.     Total 5632 

The  water  of  this  spring-  is  carbonated. 

The  Sulphurs. 

These  springs  are  located  in  Santiago  canyon,  which  opens 
into  the  Jemez  creek.  They  are  two  miles  north  of  the  Jemez 
springs  at  an  altitude  of  6,740  feet.  The  temperature  of  their 
waters  ranges  from  70  to  105  degrees  Fahrenheit.  They  flow 
from  caves  of  carbonate  of  lime,  the  caves  being  from  a  few 
inches  to  twenty  feet  in  height.  Combined,  these  caves  form 
a  lime  ridge  30  feet  high  and  200  feet  long.  The  springs 
carry  .3726  parts  of  solid  matter  in  100  parts  of  water;  the 
mineral  carried  being  chloride  of  sodium,  sulphate  and  car- 
bonate of  soda,  lime  and  magnesia  and  the  waters  resemble 
those  of  Marienbad.  The  springs  are  both  mud  and  vapor; 
being  strongly  impregnated  w7ith  sulphur,  thq^  are  much 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS.  301 

sought  by  persons  suffering    with  rheumatic  or  syphilitic- 
complaints. 

San  Antonio  Springs. 

These  springs  are  four  to  six  miles  west  of  the  sulphurs 

nd  are  also  heavily  impregnated  with  minerals  giving  them 

medical  properties  similar  to  those  of  the  Jemez  hot  springs. 

Aztec  (Ojo  Xigante)   Spring. 

About  four  miles  east  of  Santa  Fe  is  a  spring,  the  waters 
of  which  are  becoming  favorably  known  and  are  being  used 
to  a  consirable  extent  by  the  people  of  Santa  Fe  and  else- 
where. This  spring  is  known  as  the  Axtec  (Ojo  Xigante); 
since,  like  other  watering  places,  it  was  frequented  by  the 
aborigines. 

While  the  solid  matter  contained  in  the  water  is  not  so 
great  as  that  found  in  many  other  springs  in  New  Mexico, 
nevertheless  the  water  has  beneficial  effects  in  stomach  and 
liver  troubles  As  previously  noted  it  is  not  absolutely 
necessary  that  the  solid  constituents  should  run  extraor- 
dinarily high  to  be  effective  as  a  good  mineral  water. 

F.  W.  Clarke  of  the  U.  S.  Geological  Survey,  in  1885,  gives 
the  following  analysis  of  the  Aztec  spring,  which  was  made 
at  the  request  of  an  army  officer  who  had  been  drinking  the 
water  when  stationed  at  Fort  Marcy,  and  who  first  recognized 
its  beneficial  effects  on  himself  and  troops. 

Calcium  carbonate 1538 

Magnesium  carbonate 0605 

Sodium  sulphate 0225 

Calcium  sulphate  0050 

Sodium  chloride 0193 

Silica 0220 

Parts  in  100,000.     Total 2831 

In  a  foot  note  the  chemist  adds,  that  the  water  contains  enough  carbonic  acid  to 
retain  the  carbonates  of  calcium  and  magnesium  in  solution  as  bi-carbonates. 

Coyote  Canyon  Springs. 

These  springs  are  situated  in  Coyote  canyon,  at  the  south- 
western base  of  the  Sandia  mountains,  about  fourteen  miles 
southeast  of  Albuquerque,  in  Bernalillo  county. 

Three  different  places  are  noted  in  this  canyon  for  their 
water.  The  Harsch  springs  are  the  ones  first  met  in  going  up 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS.  303 

the  canyon;  the  next  are  the  original  Coyote  (Chavez)  springs; 
and  the  third  is  Topham's  (artesian  well)  spring.  Originally, 
this  water  became  known  through  the  main  Coyote  (Chavez) 
springs,  the  principal  ones  in  the  canyon,  from  which  all  of 
the  waters  now  are  celebrated  as  "Coyote  canyon  water.'' 

Afterward,  some  persons  located  and  developed  a  mining 
claim  known  as  the  Cotton-tail  mine,  now  the  Harsch  car- 
bonate spring,  sinking  to  a  depth  of  about  eighty  feet. 
This  shaft  encountered  a  flow7  of  water,  which  af terward  filled 
and  flowed  out  through  an  escape,  a  few  feet  below  the  top. 

The  soldiers  of  Coronado  frequented  the  main  Coyote 
(Chavez)  springs  as  early  as  1541-2  while  stationed  near  Albu- 
querque; and  Friar  Ruiz  and  his  co-laborers  gave  thanks  to 
the  Almighty  on  reaching  this  oasis  of  refreshment  and  rest. 

All  of  the  waters  of  Coyote  canyon  are  especially  beneficial 
for  kidney  and  bladder  troubles.  All  the  waters  of  this  canyon 
are  surcharged  with  carbon  dioxide;  hence,  they  are  classified 
as  carbonated  wraters. 

Approximately,  10,000  gallons  of  the  Top  Lam's  Artesian 
Coyote  water  were  bottled  during  1903,  and  25,000  gallons 
were  marketed  from  the  bottling  plant  of  Harsch. 

It  is  observed  from  the  similarity  and  quality  of  the  solid 
matter,  as  determined  by  analyses  of  these  waters,  that  they, 
perhaps,  come  from  the  same  source  and  are  practically  the 
same  waters. 

The  analyses  of  the  two  Harsch  springs  made  at  the  Col- 
lege of  Agriculture  and  Mechanic  Arts,  at  MesillaPark,  New 
Mexico,  show: 

Constituents.  Iron  Spring.    Cotton-tail  Spring. 

Sodium  chloride 67.60  53.34 

Sodium  sulphate 8.31  10.87 

Sodium  carbonate 12.18  4.24 

Potassium  sulphate 8.33  5.03 

Calcium  carbonate 57.15  54.76 

Magnesium  carbonate 16.11  15.79 

Iron,  silica  and  alumina 6.70  .66 

Organic  matter  &  water  of  crystallization.  7.92  3.01 

Parts  in  100,000.     Totals 184.30  147.70 

Analyses  of  the  original  Coyote  (Chaves)  spring  and  the 
Topham  Artesian  (well)"spring,  are  as  follows: 


304  NEW    MEXICO   MINES  AND   MINERALS. 

Constituents.  Chaves  Spring*                     Artesian  (weU)t 

Iron  carbonate 13.00  .4 

Magnesium  carbonate       13.40  13.8 

Calcium  carbonate 48 . 60  45 . 7 

Sodium  sulphate  14.00  8.0 

Sodium  carbonate 6.24  .... 

Sodium  chloride 58.60  19.1 

Silica trace  1.4 

Grains  per  U.  S.  Gallon.     Totals        153.84  88.4 

*Analysed  by  Ed  B.  Jorgenson,  chemist. 

(John  Weinzirl,  chemist,  1901,  University  of  New  Mexico. 

Both  of  these  waters,  also,  contain  traces  of  potasium  and 
lithium  salts,  calcium  sulphate,  phosphates  and  free  carbonic 
acid  gas  exists  in  quantity. 

Whitcomb  Springs. 

In  Tijeras  canyon  about  eighteen  miles  to  the  east  of 
Albuquerque,  a  pleasant  and  beautiful  resort  is  found  at 
Whitcomb's  springs.  The  great  tilted  block-like  mass  which 
composes  the  Sandia  mountains  is  quite  attractive  to  visitors 
and  the  inhabitants  of  Albuquerque,  during  the  heated 
season,  and  camp  Whitcomb  is  by  nature  a  favorite  spot  for 
the  rendezvous  of  the  crowds  bent  on  rest,  pleasure  and 
sight-seeing. 

The  analysis  of  Whitcomb  spring  water,  as  made  by  R.  W. 
Tinsley  of  the  University  of  New  Mexico  is  given  in  the 
following : 

Sodium  chloride 1927 

Calcium  sulphate 1 . 4360 

Calcium   carbonate 8 . 1896 

Magnesium  carbonate 1 . 5188 

Total  grains  per  U.  S.  gal 11.3371 

Las  Palomas  Hot  Spring. 

This  spring  is  in  Sierra  county  on  the  Rio  Grande,  and  can 
be  reached  from  Engle,  the  nearest  station  on  the  Atchison, 
Topeka  and  Santa  Pe  Railway. 

The  spring,  though  somewhat  obscure  when  compared 
with  some  of  the  more  widely  known  springs  of  New  Mexico, 
stands  preeminent  in  its  curative  qualities  in  cases  of 
rheumatic  affections. 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS.  305 

The  following  is  an  analysis  made,  presumably,  by  the 
College  of  Agriculture  and  Mechanic  Arts  at  Mesilla  Park: 

Constituents.  Parts  in  100,000. 

Lime 22.50 

Magnesia 3.10 

Soda 100.32 

Potash.   7..  00 

Silica 4.50 

Sulphates   6.00 

Chlorides   122.50 

( 'arbonates 17  . 55 

Water  of  crystallization 7.GJ 

291  07 
Less  oxygen,  equivalent  of 27.57 

Total   solids 2(53.50 

Warm  Sulphur  Spring  of  Rio  Pajarito. 

This  noted  sulphur  spring  is  at  Rio  Pajarito,  Taos  county. 
The  native  people  ascribe  many  virtues  to  the  "sublime  heal- 
ing powers"  of  its  waters.  Its  temperature  is  68°  Fah. 

The  following  analysis  in  parts  of  100,000,  made  by  Oscar 
Loew  in  1875  is  here  given: 

Sodium  carbonate 17.01 

Calcium  and  magnesium  carbonates   7 .19 

Sodium  sulphate 14.60 

Sodium  chloride 9.11 

Silica trace 

Potassa trace 

Lithia trace 

Total 47.91 

A  foot  note  by  the  chemist  states  "that   the  water  contains  carbonic  acid    and 
hydrogen  sulphide. 

Socorro  Thermal  Springs. 

At  the  foot  of  the  eastern  slope  of  the  south  end  of 
Socorro  mountain  is  located  the  water  supply  of  the  town  of 
Socorro. 

These  waters  come  from  a  fractured  zone  or  fault  in  the 
mountain  at  that  point,  oozing  and  bubbling  out  at  several 
places.  The  chief  How  is  from  the  lower  or  big  spring 
where  a  small  reservoir  has  been  constructed  from  which 
the  water  is  conducted  in  a  pipe  to  Socorro,  about  three  miles 
to  the  northeast.  O.  R.  Smith  and  the  writer,  in  1901, 


306  NEW    MEXICO   MINES  AND   MINERALS. 

gauged  the  flow,  and  found  the  same  to  be  approximately 
700,000  gallons  in  twenty  four  hours,  from  the  whole  group. 
During  the  fall  of  1898  an  earthquake  shock  visibly  increased 
the  volume  of  water  from  its  former  flow.  What  effect  the 
late  seismic  disturbances  have  had  on  the  flow,  if  any  at  all, 
is  not  known.  A  series  of  measurements  on  the  capacity  of 
the  spring  would  be  interesting  to  the  people  of  Socorro  that 
they  may  be  able  to  know  how  the  present  earth  tremors  are 
affecting  their  water  supply. 

The  waters  are  alkaline  in  character  and  have  a  temperature 
of  93°  Fah.  Prom  the  nature  of  the  volcanic  rocks  about  the 
springs  and  deposits  of  silicious  sinter,  it  would  seem  that 
these  springs  in  former  times,  when  they  were  young,  pos- 
sessed a  much  greater  degree  of  activity  than  at  present. 
Since  silica  is  soluble  in  hot  alkaline  solutions  the  roughness, 
to  the  touch,  of  the  adjacent  rocks  is  chiefly  due  to  the  coating 
of  the  silicious  sinter  which  has  been  brought  up  in  solution 
by  the  hot  waters. 

No  town  in  New  Mexico,  other  than  Socorro,  has  such 
advantages  in  a  gravity  supply  of  pure  water.  The  analysis 
made  by  R.  H.  Case  and  H.  T.  Goodjohn  of  the  New  Mexico 
School  of  Mines  in  1903,  is  as  follows: 

Constituents.  Grains  per  U.  S.  Gallon. 

Calcium  carbonate 3 . 1702 

Magnesium  carbonate .6967 

Potassium  carbonate 2.0529 

Potassium  sulphate 4.7243 

Sodium  sulphate 3.0005 

Sodium  chloride 1.5658 

Silica 1 .6114 

Iron  and  alumina none 

Organic  matler trace 

Total  solids 16.8218 

Analysis  of  the  water  of  Dog  Lake  spring  of  Estancia  plain, 
as  made  by  the  New  Mexico  School  of  Mines: 

Constituents.  Grains  per  U.  S.  Gallon. 

Magnesium  sulphate  556 

Calcium  sulphate 437 

Potassium  sulphate 65 

Magnesium  chloride 36 

Alumina 1 

Volatile  matter. .                             171 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS.  307 

Sulphur  spring  at  the  head  of  Rocky  Arroyo,  Eddy  county, 
as  analyzed  by  E.  M.  Skeats  of  El  Paso: 

Constituents.  Parts  per  100,000 

Silica  0.75 

Carbonate  of  lime 24.20 

Alumina 0.25 

Sulphate  of  lime 2(5.90 

Magnesium  sulphate 30  30 

Sodium  sulphate l.TT 

Sodium  chloride 1.76 

Water  of  crystallization 4 . 54 

Total 90.47 

The  gases  are  sulphuretted  hydrogen  and  carbon  dioxide.    This  is  splendid  suphur 
v, -uter,  although  the  solids  are  less  than  usual. 

Sulphur  Springs  near  "bottomless  lake"  Roswell,  Chaves 
county: 

(E.  M.  Skeats,   Analyst.) 

Constituents.  Parts  per  1CKXOCO. 

Silica 1.00 

Alumina trace 

Calcium  carbonate 22.10 

Calcium  sulphate 350 . 30 

Magnesium  sulphate 116.40 

Magnesium  chloride 47.60 

Potassium  chloride 66.50 

Sodium  chloride  1915.00 

Borax trace 

Total  solids 2518.90 

The  gases  are  carbon  dioxide  and  sulphuretted  hydrogen;  the  latter  gas  is  very 
heavy.    This  water  has  been  used  with  apparrent  good  effects  on  rheumatic  patients. 

Sulphur  Spring  on  Berrendo  river,  Chaves   county: 

(E.  M.  Skeats,    Analyst.) 

Constituents.  Parts  per  100,000. 

Silica 5.50 

Alumina ..    1.00 

Calcium  carbonate 17 .05 

Calcium  sulphate 72.40 

Magnesium  sulphate 35.25 

Magnesium  chloride 12.45 

Sodium  chloride 148.05 

Water  of  crystallization 5.30 

Total  solids 297.00 

Sulphuretted  hydrogen  is  present  to  a  moderate  degree. 


308  NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS. 

Spring  on  Penasco,  Chaves  county: 

(E.  M.  Skeats,  Analyst.) 

Constituents.  Parts  per  100,000. 

Silica 0.50 

Alumina 0.50 

Calcium  carbonate 18 . 00 

Calcium  sulphate 21.95 

Magnesium  sulphate 2L.20 

Sodium  chloride .  3.85 

Water  of  crystallization   trace 

Total  solids 66.00 

Sulphuretted  hydrogen— faint.    This  water  is  a  good  mild  aparieat. 

Water  Grove. 

Jurassic  (?)  sandstone,  San  Juan  Mesa,  60  miles  north  of 

Roswell. 

(E.  M.   Skeats,  Analyst.) 

Constituents.  Parts  per  100.000. 

Silica trace 

Alumina  trace 

Calcium  carbonate 16.00 

Magnesium  carbonate 13.65 

Potassium  sulphate 54 . 45 

Potassium  carbonate 22.50 

Sodium  sulphate 120.00 

Sodium  chloride 22  60 


Total  solids 249.20 

This  is  a  remarkable  water  in  every  sense  and  perhaps,  it 
has  no  equal  in  New  Mexico  in  gout  and  rheumatic  affections. 

Carlsbad  Spring. 

Above  the  town  of  Carlsbad  about  two  miles  are  the  famous 
mineral  springs  of  the  Pecos  valley,  which  are  widely  known 
as  the  "Carlsbad  Springs." 

Formerly,  the  town  of  Carlsbad  was  known  as  Edd}7,  but 
was  changed  to  its  presnt  name  on  account  of  the  supposed 
similarity  of  its  mineral  waters  to  those  of  Carlsbad,  Austria. 
The  principal  striking  difference  of  these  two  waters  is  in 
the  carbonate  of  lime  and  magnesium  cholride.  The  famous 
Austrian  spring  is  heavy  in  magnesium  chloride  with  a  very 
small  amount  of  carbonate  of  lime;  while  the  spring  in  Eddy 
county  is  destitute  of  the  magnesium  compound  and  contains 
a  great  deal  of  lime  carbonate. 


MOW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS.  309 

Carlsbad  springs  in  Eddy  county  break  forth  on  either  side 
of  the  Rio  Pecos,  with  a  flow  of  approximately  5,500  gallons 
per  minute. 

The  waters  of  these  springs  have  become  noted  and  rec- 
ognized for  their  great  medicinal  values;  especially,  in  cases 
of  kidney  trouble  and  dyspepsia. 

The  following  is  an  analysis  of  the  waters  of  the  spring 
taken  from  Governor  Otero's  Report  of  1903;  the  authority  of 
the  analysis  is  not  given: 


Constituents. 

Sulphate  of  soda  (glauber's  salts)   .................  44.02 

chloride  of  sodium  (common  salt)    .................  50.50 

Sulphate  of  magnesia  (epsom  salts)  ................  21.63 

Sulphate  of  lime  ................................  17.40 

(  'arbonate  of  lime  ........  .  ......................  14.00 

Silica  .........................................  1.20 

Iron  and  alumina  ................................  1.20 

Carbonate  of  magnesia  ..........................  2.05 

Water  of  crystallization  ............................  3.25 

Total  solids  .................................    155.25 

Quelites  Mineral  Spring. 

This  spring  is  located  about  two  miles  above  the  old  Mexican 
village  of  Quelites,  on  the  Antonio  Sedillo  grant  and  on  the 
northeast  side  of  the  San  Jose  river,  at  the  foot  of  some  bluffs 
of  massive  Cretaceous  sandstones. 

The  water  is  tepid  and  partakes  of  its  high  mineral  qualities 
due  to  the  subterranean  source  from  the  underlying  saliferous 
"red  beds;''  the  spring  may,  with  propriety,  be  classed  as  a 
saline-soda  spring.  In  addition  to  the  great  amount  of  solid 
matter,  the  water  is  highly  charged  with  carbon  dioxide. 
The  contained  iron  at  depth  is  a  carbonate,  but  on  reaching 
the  surface  and  in  coming  in  contact  with  the  air,  under 
released  pressure,  it  is  precipitated  in  the  ferric  state,  in  and 
about  the  spring. 

The  flow  of  the  spring  is  now  quite  small  (being  in  extreme 
old  age)  and  comes  from  the  top  of  a  large  mound  of  traver- 
tine, which  it  has  build  up  by  its  own  action  in  times  past. 

For  stomach  troubles  and  kindred  ailments,  this  water 
seems  to  be  especially  beneficial. 

The  following  is  an  analysis,   made   by   Prof.    Walter  F. 


310  NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS. 

Haines  of  Rush  Medical  College,   Chicago,   under  date    of 
February  21,  1885: 


Constituents. 

Sodium  chloride  ...............................  768.091 

Sodium  sulphate.         .........................  561.553 

Sodium  bicarbonate  .........................  13.605 

Sodium  bromide  .............................  .  109 

Sodium  iodide  ...................................  trace 

Sodium   borate  ................................  .  654 

Sodium    phosphate       .........................  trace 

Potassium  chloride  .............................  16.528 

Lithium  ........................................  .308 

Barium    sulphate       ...........................  trace 

Calcium  carbonate  ..............................  138.504 

Magnesium.  .  .    ..................................  56.897 

Iron  ...........  ...............................  3.858 

Manganese  .....................................  trace 

Alumina  ..........................    .........  .698 

Silica..  1.867 


Total 1562.672 

Gila  River  Hot  Spring.* 

This  spring  and  others  are  situated  on  the  upper  Gila,  and 
near  Diamond  Creek,  in  southwestern  Socorro  county.  The 
water  is  very  pure  as  shown  by  its  low  percentage  of  min- 
eral or  solid  matter. 

The  following  analysis  was  made  by  Wm.  M.  Courtis,  of 
Detroit,  Michigan,  October  5,  1903: 

Constituents.  ^oo'flOO11 

Sulphuric  acid  combined  with  lime  and  potash 3.420 

Ferrous  sulphate 221 

Calcium  sulphate  2.829 

Soda  and  potash   carbonates 14.020 

Silica .      6.562 


Total  solids 27.052 

*Temperature  100°  Fan. 

The  mineral  springs  above  given  are  among  the  more  pro- 
minent ones  in  New  Mexico,  yet  they  constitute  only  a  frac- 
tional part  of  the  entire  number  that  exist  within  the 
boarders  of  the  territory. 

The  localities  of  a  few  of  these  springs  are  given  briefly  in 
the  following. 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS.  311 

Hot  Springs. 

Caballo  springs  (?)  five  miles  from  Fort  McRae,  Socorro 
county  136°  Fah. 

Hot  springs  about  six  miles  north  of  Fay  wood  station, 
Grant  county;  temperature  150 :  Fah. 

Hot  springs  at  copper  mines  of  Rio  San  Francisco,  western 
Socorro  county;  temperature  130  Fah. 

On  Diamond  creek,  near  mouth,  Socorro  county;  temper- 
ature 151  Fah. 

Mineral  Springs. 

Three  miles  east  of  Gallup,  McKinley  county. 

Eighteen  miles  east  of  Abiquiu,  Rio  Arriba  county. 

Five  miles  east  of  Ojo  Azufre,  McKinley  county,  fifteen 
miles  west  of  Fort  Wingate.  Water  alkaline. 

East  of  Great  ranch  and  three  miles  northeast  of  Las  Ve- 
gas, San  Miguel  county.  Alkaline  and  sulphuretted  waters. 

Ojo  Azufre,  twenty  miles  west  of  Fort  Wingate,  McKinley 
county,  sulphuretted,  etc. 

Ojo  Sarco,  on  Rio  Grande,  north  of  Santa  Barbara,  Taos 
county. 

Soda  Springs. 

Three  miles  north  of  Ojo  Caliente,  Taos  county. 

On  Salado  creek,  four  or  five  miles  south  of  San  Ysidro, 
Sandoval  county. 

Four  or  five  miles  south  of  Carrizo  valley,  Socorro  county. 

Thirteen  miles  northeast  of  Isleta,  Bernalillo  county. 

Stinking  spring;  ten  miles  northeast  of  Coolidge,  Valencia 
county.  Sulphuretted  water. 

About  four  miles  southeast  of  Petaca,  Rio  Arriba  county. 

Sulphur  Springs. 

In  Chusca  valley,  Rio  Arriba  county. 
West  of  Mesa  Lucera,  Valencia  county. 
Five  miles  south  of  Taos,  Taos  county. 
Between  Pefiasco  and  Mora,  on  the  Rio  Pueblo. 

Warm  Springs. 

At  the  head  of  San  Diego  canyon,  Rio  Arriba  county. 
Ojo  Caliente,  Mimbres  river,  fifteen  miles  north  of  Mimbres 
postoffice,  Grant  county. 


312  NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS. 

Ojo  Caliente,  twelve  miles  southwest  of  Zuni,  Valencia 
county. 

Ojo  Caliente,  near  Cherryville  and  Canyada  Alamosa, 
Socorro  county;  temperature  85C  Fah. 

Ordinary  Springs. 

Patterson's  springs,  western  Socorro  county,  at  Patterson 
postoffice. 

Horse  springs,  western  Socorro  county,  northeast  of 
Patterson  about  six  miles. 

Gallina  spring,  in  Gallinas  mountains,  eastern  Lincoln 
county. 

Estancia,  Antelope  and  Buffalo  springs,  in  the  Estancia 
plain,  Torrance  county. 

Chico  springs,  on  ex-senator  Dorsey's  ranch,  twenty  miles 
from  Maxwell  City,  Colfax  county. 

Hermy  springs,  upper  Pecos  near  Willis  postoffice;  sum- 
mer resort. 

Gallo  spring,  at  San  Rafael,  south  of  Grant  postoffice, 
Valencia  county. 


CHAPTER  XXXVIII. 


WELL  (Artesian)  AND  RIVER  WATERS. 

It  is  not  possible  to  enter  into  detail  concerning  the  irri- 
gation and  potable  (river  and  well)  waters  of  the  territory  in 
the  brief  resume,  which  this  volume  is  intended  to  cover. 
Such  an  exposition,  as  would  do  justice  to  the  waters  of  the 
territory,  relative  to  their  importance  as  a  factor  in  the  pres- 
ent and  future  development  of  the  commonwealth,  wrould  re- 
quire a  volume  of  several  hundred  pages.  To  water  alone  we 
must  look  to  the  rebuilding  of  the  vanquished  empires  of  the 
Montezumas  in  the  southwest. 

Geologically,  the  conditions  for  irrigation  are  favorable  in 
a  general  sense;  practically,  can  the  problem  be  solved?  We 
answer  yes.  As  an  illustration  of  what  can'  be  done  in  the 
arid  west,  we  point  with  pride  to  the  Pecos  valley.  The  oldest 
settlers  of  that  valley  are  now  realizing,  what  seemed  to  them 
a  quarter  of  a  century  ago,  a  mirage  on  the  arid  western 
plain. 

New  ideas  are  fast  superseding  the  old;  water  is  now  being 
developed  in  large  quantities;  where  formerly,  none  was  sus- 
pected to  exist.  For  example,  the  plains  about  Deming,  the 
Jornado  del  Muerto,  at  Lordsburg,  the  artesian  flows  at  Ros- 
well,  the  deep  well  at  Hachita  and  shallow  wells  of  the  Estan- 
cia  plain,  all  demonstrate  the  existence,  distribution,  stor- 
age and  circulation  of  the  underground  water  of  which  our 
present  knowledge  is  very  meager. 

Many  of  the  potable  well  waters  are  as  highly  mineralized 
and  efficacious,  perhaps,  as  a  number  of  the  so-called  mineral 
springs.  For  instance,  the  Fred  Schmidt  well  in  the  eastern 
part  of  the  Jornado  plain  is  very  strongly  impregnated  with 
epsom  salts. 

Again,  the  well  of  the  El  Paso  and  North  Eastern  Railway 
at  Carrizozo,  near  the  mol  jxtis,  is  strongly  sulphur,  with  free 
sulphuretted  hydrogen.  Numerous  instances  occur  through- 
out the  territory  of  these  mineralized  wrells.  As  stated  in  the 


314 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS. 


chapter  on  mineral  springs,  most  all  the  waters  in  New  Mex- 
ico are  mineralized  or  heavily  charged  with  materials  in  solu- 
tion. This  condition  has  on  certain  occasions  been  a  great 
source  of  annoyance  on  the  part  of  some  of  the  railways  in 
securing  suitable  water  for  the  boilers  of  their  engines.  From 
the  collection  of  analyses  of  various  river  and  well  waters, 
embodied  in  this  chapter,  an  idea  of  their  general  character 
may  be  deduced. 

Waters  of  the  El  Paso  and  Southwestern  Railway 
Company. 

(By  kind  permission  of  the  Company.) 

This  railway  follows  along  the  southern  boundary  line  of 
New  Mexico.  The  source  of  the  waters  is  from  the  north, 
mostly  from  the  Mimbres  district. 

The  region  traversed  by  the  water  is  mainly  volcanic;  that 
is,  the  hills  are  principally  volcanic — the  soils  of  the  valleys 
are  composed  of  the  detritus  of  volcanic  rocks  and  ash- 
mostly  from  comparatively  recent  eruptions. 

The  waters,  as  might  be  expected,  are  of  an  alkaline  car- 
bonate impregnation.  Their  approximate  analyses  as  made 
by  E.  M.  Skeats,  in  parts  per  100,000,  are  as  follows: 


Name  of  well. 

Pelea. 

Mal-pais 

Colum- 
bus. 

Hachita. 

PI  ay  as. 

Silica,  alumina,  etc.  .  .  . 
Lime  carbonate.  .    
Magnesium  carbonate.  . 

8.25 
12.00 
3.62 

5.00 
5.26 
7.76 

4.00 
10.00 

2.02 
3.00 
1  51 

12.91 
4.00 
trace 

Sodium  carbonate  
Sodium  sulphate  
Masrnesium  sulphate 

'io!33" 

3  45 

30.20 
24.28 

9.00 
24.45 

19.35 

4.87 

33.84 
31.70 

Sodium  chloride  

14.35 

10.50 

10.50 

3.50 

29  55 

Total  solids     

62.00 

83.00 

90.00? 

34.25 

112.00 

Depth  of  well  in  feet.  .  . 

164 

168 

225 

685* 

168 

*  The  H.ichita  well  at  480  feet  had  the  same  total  solids  as  at  the  extreme  depth  of 
685  feet. 

Pecos   Valley  Waters. 

Through  the  kindness  of  Professor  E.  M.  Skeats  of  El  Paso, 
it  wras  made  possible  to  include  in  this  volume  the  analyses  of 
all  the  principal  waters  of  the  Pecos  valley.  To  him,  credit  is 


NEW    MEXICO   MINES  AND   MINERALS.  315 

due  for  all  these  analyses,  which  were  made  in  his  laboratory: 
and  it  is  understood  that  he  be  given  credit  whe  re  the  analyst's 
name  is  not  specifically  given  for  any  particular  analysis. 
All  analyses  are  based  on  parts  in  100,000,  unless  otherwise 
given: 

Demmet's  Lake,  east  of  Roswell. 

Silica 3.00 

Alumina 5.00 

Calcium  carbonate 1(5 . 50 

Calcium  sulphate 162.40 

Magnesium  sulphate 76.80 

Sodium  sulphate. 4.10 

Sodium  chloride 129.00 

Calcium  sulphide  .  V) 37  . 80 

Water  of  crystallization 11.50 

Total  solids 446 . 10 

There  are  springs  on  the  margin  of  this  lake  which  give  out 
sulphuretted  hydrogen:  the  odor  from  most  of  them  is  very 
weak — the  others  strong.  The  water  is  used  to  a  limited 
extent  for  irrigating  and  appears  to  give  fair  results. 

Carlsbad  Water  Supply. 

The  supply  is  developed  in  Dark  canyon  by  a  series  of  wells 
and  tunnels  in  the  bed  of  the  canyon.  The  wells  are  about 
sixty  feet  deep:  and  are  four  miles  southwest  of  Carlsbad. 
The  average  analysis  is  as  follows  : 

Silica 2.00 

Alumina .    3.00 

Calcium  carbonate 21.00 

Magnesium  carbonate 4.18 

Magnesium  sulphate 8.31 

Sodium  sulphate 8.10 

Sodium  chloride 3 . 05 

Water  of  crystallization 3.86 


Total  solids 53.50 

This  water  is  from  an  underground  stream  which  has  its 
source  from  springs  in  the  Guadalupe  mountains.  Fifteen 
miles  up  the  canyon  the  water  flows  on  the  surface.  The 
character  of  the  water  varies  somewhat  with  the  season  and 
with  rains. 


316  NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS. 

BLUE  SPRINGS. 

Large  head  springs,  in  a  lime  conglomerate,  feeding  Black 
river: 

Silica 1.50 

Alumina 2.00 

Calcium  carbonate 15.20 

Calcium  sulphate 51.50 

Magnesium  sulphate 21 . 66 

Sodium  sulphate 5.30 

Sodium  chloride 3.?»l 

Potassium  nitrate 41 

Water  of  crystallization 19  22 


Total  solids  at  10u°  C  ............    ...........   120.00 

RIO  HONDO  ARTESIAN  (ROSWELL)  BASIN. 

Notice  has  just  been  received  that  the  Secretary  of  the  In- 
terior has  authorized  the  purchase  of  the  Hondo  reservoir 
site.  This  reservoir  is  to  be  constructed  in  Chaves  county, 
on  the  Rio  Hondo,  twelve  miles  west  of  Roswell.  This  is  a 
natural  site  and  with  small  amount  of  embankment  can  be 
given  a  capacity  of  40,000  acre-feet.  Practically  all  the  water 
that  the  Hondo  will  furnish  in  low-  water  years  can  be  im- 
pounded at  this  point.  It  is  possible  to  irrigate  15,000  acres. 

Rio  Hondo  Waters  At  Roswell  Springs  in  Hondo 

above  Picacho.  (clear)  (above  Roswell.) 

Silica  ....................  trace  ......  ...... 

Alumina  ..................  trace  ......  ...... 

Calcium  carbonate  .......  14.40  / 

Magnesium  carbonate....       2.52  f 

Calcium  sulphate  .........  59.20  | 

Magnesium  sulphate  .....  25.65 

Sodium  chloride  ..........  9.66  ) 


9n  nn  Q  p-n 

Calcium  sulphate  .........     59.20  |  ft1  9A  9Q  1ft 

Magnesium  sulphate  .....     25.65  f 


Ooi  o  AC\ 

Sodium  sulphate  ..........       4.22  f 

Water  of  crystallization..       385  10.46  16.00 


Total  solids 119.50  121.00  58.0*0 

ROSWELL'S  ARTESIAN  WELLS. 

Well  No.  1.     Depth  227  feet;  temperature  70.5°  Fah: 

Silica  and  Alumina 3 . 55 

Calcium  carbonate 17.75 

Calcium  sulphate  16.10 

Magnesium  sulphate 15.56 

Magnesium  chloride 1 .54 

Sodium  chloride..  24.50 


Total  solids..  79.00 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS.  317 

Well  No.  2.     Depth  192  feet;  temperature  69"-  Fah: 

Silica,  alumina  and  water  of  crystallization *.<>."> 

Calcium  carbonate 14.00 

Calcium  and  magnesium  sulphates 3400 

Sodium  chloride 11.. '55 


Total  solids   63.00 

Well  No.  3.     Depth  225  feet;  temperature  71 :  Fah: 

Silica  and  aluminum 2.02 

( 'alcium  carbonate 19.20 

Calcium  and  magnesium  sulphates ,37.80 

Sodium  chloride..  21.93 


Total  solids 81.00 

Well  No.  4.     Depth  150  feet;  temperature  64.5°  Fah: 

April  1896.  Jan.  1897. 
Silica,  alumina  and  water  of  crytalli- 

zation     4.80  6.95 

Calcium  carbonate 19.00  17.50 

Calcium  and  magnesium  sulphates 48.35  39.50 

Sodium  chloride. .                                            40.85  29.05 


Total  solids 113.00  93.00 

Well  No.  5.    Depth  331  feet: 

Silica,  alumina  and  water  of  crystallization 3.30 

Calcium  carbonate 17 . 50 

Calcium  and  magnesium  sulphate 57.20 

Sodium  chloride.  .  38.00 


Total  solids 116.00 

These  wells  from  No.  1  to  No.  5,  inclusive,  are  in  what  is 
known  as  the  Roswell  basin,  extending  between  north 
springs  and  south  springs,  with  Roswell  centrally  located. 

It  is  observed  that  the  various  springs  compare  favorably, 
both  in  analysis  and  temperature,  with  the  different  artesian 
wells.  Also,  the  level  of  the  headwaters  of  the  springs  prac- 
tically governs  the  level  at  which  the  artesian  waters  will 
flow. 

Berrendo  Artesian  Basin. 

This  district  lies  immediately  to  the  north  of  Roswell  in  the 
Berrendo  basin;  which  is  similar  in  all  respects  to  that  of  the 
Hondo. 


318  NEW    MEXICO   MINES   AND    MINERALS. 

An  analysis  from  an  artesian  well  in  this  basin  gives  the 
following  results : 

Silica,  alumina  and  water  of  crystallization 20.00 

Calcium  carbonate 19 . 00 

Calcium  and  magnesium  sulphates 67 .00 

Sodium  chloride..  138.00 


Total  solids 244.00 

Berrendo  spring  water: 

Silica 2.00 

Alumina 1.00 

Calcium  carbonate 22.00 

Calcium  sulphate 39.30 

Magnesium  sulphate  28.05 

Sodium  sulphate 21.80 

Sodium  chloride 146.00 

Water  of  crystallization  .  4.20 


Total  solids 264 . 35 

This  water  contains  some  sulphuretted  hydrogen.  It  is 
observed  that  the  water  is  saline  in  character,  but  no  difficulty 
has  been  experienced  in  irrigating  with  it  and  results  are  just 
as  good  as  with  the  water  of  the  Hondo  basin. 

FELEZ  ARTESIAN  (HAGERMAN)  BASIN. 

Well  No.  6,  at  Hagerman;  depth  800  feet: 

Silica 1.50 

Alumina 50 

Calcium  carbonate ...  20 . 90 

Calcium  sulphate 19.20 

Magnesium    sulphate 23.25 

Sodium  sulphate 4.08 

Sodium  chloride. .  3.10 


Total  solids 72.53 

The  following  are  analyses  of  the  head   waters  of  the  Rio 
Pelez  before  sinking: 

Head  Spring*  From  Stream. 

Silica /  ~n  \                1  20 

Alumina. \'  \  .40 

Calcium  carbonate 18.80                        12.50 

Calcium  sulphate 11.11                         14.58 

Magnesium  sulphate 9.23                         12.25 

Magnesium  carbonate 1.85                          2.03 


NEW    MEXICO   MINES  AND    MINERALS.  3111 

Sodium  carbonate .'J.l^ 

Sodium  chloride 3.85  4.33 

Water  of  crystallization. .  1.3<s  1.84 


Total  solids 46.72  .",2.39 

*Head  Spring  temperature,  61°  Fan, 

MESCALERO  ARTESIAN   BASIN. 

This  basin  lies  on  the  east  side  of  the  Pecos  river  from 
Hagerman.  The  analysis  of  water  from  an  artesian  well  350 
feet  deep,  gives  the  following: 

Silica,  alumina  and  water  of  crystallization 28.60 

Calcium  carbonate 10.40 

Calcium  sulphate • 184.50 

Magnesium  sulphate 66.75 

Sodium  chloride 5.75 

Total  solids 296.00 

MOUND  SPRING. 

This  spring  is  near  the  Rio  Pecos,  northeast  of  Hagerman: 

Silica,  alumina,  etc  11 . 34 

Calcium  carbonate 12 . 90 

( 'alcium  sulphate 185.00 

Magnesium  sulphate 50. CO 

M  agnesium  chloride 1 . 26 

Sodium  chloride 8.80 

Water  of  crystallization I/. 70 

Total  solids 287.00 

Mound  spring  is  a  very  large  one  and  is  on  top  of  a  mound 
built  up  by  the  solids  from  the  water  and  drifted  sands;  it  is 
practically  an  artesian  well.  As  seen  from  the  analysis  it  is 
gypsum  water,  coming  from  the  gypsiferous  sands  in  the 
northern  part  of  the  Mescalero  basin.  The  water  raises 
good^alfalfa. 

WILLINGHAM'S  ARTESIAN  WELL. 

This  well,  in  the  Mescalero  basin,  carries  a  very  large  per- 
centage of  gypsum.  It  lies  to  the  northeast  of  Hagerman, 
in  the  vicinity  of  Mound  spring,  and  is  450  feet  deep.  The 
following  is  the  analysis: 

Silica 4.00 

Alumina 2.00 

Calcium  carbonate.. ,  14.00 


Fig.  49-CECILL'S  WELL,  Largest  in  Pecos  Valley. 


NEW    MEXICO    MIXES    AND    MINERALS.  821 

( 'alcium  sulphate 200.00 

Magnesium  sulphate 55.10 

Sodium  chloride 7 . 15 

Water  of  crystallization 8.25 


Total  solids 290.50 

RIO  PENASCO  BASIN. 

An  artesian  well  250  (?)  feet  deep  gives  the  following: 

Silica,  alumina  and  water  of  crystallization 17.03 

( 'alcium  carbonate 16 . 15 

('alcium  and  magnesium  sulphates 53.90 

Sodium  chloride 2.92 

Total  solids 93.00 

Water  from  the  Pecos  river,  by  Gilbert's  ranch: 

Silica 50 

Alumina .50 

Calcium  carbonate 18.00 

Calcium  sulphate 21.95 

Magnesium  sulphate.    21.20 

Sodium  chloride. .  3.85 


Total   solids 6(i.OO 

This  water  contains  trac3s  of  free  sulphuretted  hydrogen. 

Head  Spring,  in  conglomerate: 

Silica 4.00 

Alumina 1.00 

Calcium  carbonate 21.45 

Calcium   sulphate 34  40 

Magnesium  sulphate 34.65 

Sodium  sulphate 3.65 

Sodium  chloride 2.65 

Water  of  crystallization .  5.20 


Total  solids 107.00 

These  springs  are  west  and  above  the  McDonald  well. 

McDonald's  artesian   well:   depth   144    feet;   temperature 
).:>    Pah.     The  analysis  gives  the  following  results: 

Silica  and  alumina 1.50 

Calcium  carbonate 22.00 

('alcium  sulphate 19.05 

Magnesium  sulphate 31.35 

Sodium  sulphate 24.60 

Sodium  chloride 2.34 

Water  of  crystallization .,       11.1<> 


Total  solids   112.00 


NEW    MEXICO   MINES   AND   MINERALS. 


323 


The  Panning  spring  is  a  large  one  and  similar  to  the  north 
and  south  head  springs  of  Roswell;  the  temperature  is  66.5° 
Fahrenheit: 


Silica 

Alumina 

Calcium  carbonate 

( 'alcium  sulphate. .    

Magnesium  sulphate 

Sodium  chloride 

Sodium  sulphate 

Water  of  crystallization. 


Total  solids, 


3.00 

'2.00 

18.75 

53.20 

37.05 

3.51 

9.09 

5.40 

132.00 


Analysis  of  Rio  Pecos  Water. 

(E.  M.  Skeats,  Analyst.) 


h 

0 

H 

o 

|? 

g 

J 

.—  " 

II 

. 

8) 

& 

"S*^ 

4) 

^  X 

O  c« 

Constituents. 

OQ 

,§  & 

0^ 

|« 

4)  O 
y: 

u 

t 

h 

4J.S 

c3 

5£  O 

!>«.? 

0 

1 

£ 

0  | 

4> 

G  C 

'IS 

* 

3 

1-3 

p 

3 

< 

s 

3 

q 

£ 

SiO 

1  75 

'      a    n 

3  00 

3  00 

3  00 

Al.,6->  

.50 

r    6.00 

5.00-J 

2.  GO 

J-     8.00 

6.  00-] 

2^00 

6.00 

CaCO-j 

15  00 

12  40 

10  80 

9  80 

14  64 

12  10 

14  50 

CaSO4  
MgCOs  

144.30 

181.00 

>     192  00-< 

96.83 

35.08 

107.00 

184.70 

126.20 
8  61 

MgS04  

33.00 

69.30 

1                 1 

95.65 

29.00 

67.98 

57.30 

23.40 

N  n  *)  S  O  A 

2  50 

20  80 

50  82 

40  00 

30  90 

10  85 

1  27 

NaCl  

6.54 

225.50 

80.10 

142.20 

60.10 

182.50 

111.20 

49.26 

Aq.  of  cryst.  .. 

21.91 

23.80 

25.30 

7.70 

20.18 

58.22 

.80 

12.01 

Total  solids.. 

223.00 

520.50 

334.  Ou 

408.00 

202.00 

464.00 

384.35 

237.00 

In  suspension.. 

clear 

dlear 

clear 

clear 

clear 

5  209  88 

6  00 

Below  are  given  three  analyses:  The  first  is  from  a  well 
(pumping  station)  in  the  Mesilla  valley;  the  second  is  a  sample 
of  water  from  an  acequia  at  Mesilla  Park;  the  third  is  a  sample 
of  water  from  the  Pecos  river. 

It  is  observed  that  the  station  well  contains  no  suspended 
matter,  whatever;  while  the  Pecos  river  and  especially  the 
acequia  carries  a  very  large  amount  'of  silt.  The  analyses 
were  made  at  the  College  of  Agriculture  and  Mechanic  Arts; 
the  basis  of  analysis  is  parts  per  100,000: 


324  NEW   MEXICO   MINES  AND   MINERALS. 

Constituents.                                                Station    Acequia  Water  Pecos 

Well.          (Rio  Grande.)  River. 

Suspended  matter 831.40  179.70 

Total  solids..                                     104.00             44.11  312.59 


Lime 25.30  8.26  53.28 

Magnesia 5.65  1.36  17.08 

Soda 18.38  7.76  53.55 

Potassa 2.13  .94  2.65 

Iron  and  alumina 1.85  .93 

Silica 2.50  

Sulphates         2.11  10.42  103.26 

Chlorides 15.33  5.41  63.94 

Carbonates  9.90  5.06  3.19 

Crvst.  Water  of. .  26.16  4.27  29.16 


Totals 107.46  45.33  327.04 

Ogygen  equivalent  of  Cl  (deduct) 3.46  1.22  14.45 


Total  solids  (corrected) 104.00  44.11  312.59 

Water  Supply  of  Albuquerque. 

The  following  analysis  is  furnished  by  the  Water  Supply 
Company  of  Albuquerque,  which  supplies  the  city  with 
water: 

(John  Weinzirl.  chemist,  University  of  New  Mexico.) 

Ingredients.  Grains  per  U.  S 

gallon. 

Sodium  chloride  1.03 

Sodium    sulphate 5 . 25 

Sodium  carbonate 1.71 

Calcium  carbonate 3.71 

Magnesium  carbonate 1 . 70 

Silica 4. 92 

Iron  and  alumina -. . . .  .25 

Water  of  crystallization,  etc .18 

Total  solids 18.75 

Reaction  alkaline. 

Hardness.  Degrees 

Temporary 2.58 

Permanent 5.08 

Total 7.66 

Analyzed  July  13,  1093. 


NKW    MEXICO   MINES   AND   MINERALS.  325 

The  total  depth  of  the  Water  Supply  Company's  deepest 
well  is  700  feet;  but  the  main  supply  comes  from  a  stratum  of 
sand  and  gravel  185  feet  below  the  surface.  This  well  is  in 
the  northeast  part  of  the  city,  in  the  Rio  Grande  valley;  the 
now  is  exceedingly  strong.  There  are  eight  wrells  all  told. 

This  is  an  excellent  water  for  drinking  and  domestic  pur- 
poses. 

Mimbres  Water  (Deming). 

The  Mimbres  River  Water  Company,  which  has  recently 
been  organized  for  supplying  the  city  of  El  Paso  with  water 
from  the  under-fiow  of  the  Mimbres  river,  immediately  south 
of  Deming,  has  kindly  furnished  the  following  analysis  from 
the  Pittsburg  Testing  Laboratory: 

Constituents.  Grains  per  U.  S. 

gallon. 

Free  carbonic  acid 1 . 54 

Silica 4.32 

< 'alcium  carbonate 7.81 

Magnesium  carbonate 3.61 

*Sodium  oxide 8.28 

Sodium  sulphate 5.7* 

Sodium  chloride 3 . 57 

Sodium  nitrate .92 

This  soda  exists  as  sodium  silicate  and  carbonate. 

The  above  analysis  is  typical  of  the  water  supply  of  Deming. 
Estancia  Spring. 

The  following  analysis  of  water  from  this  spring,  calcul- 
ated under  two  different  forms,  was  furnished  by  the  Penn- 
sylvania Development  Company. 

Parts  per  Grains  per 

Constituents  100,000  U.  S.  Gallon 

Silica 2.50  1.45 

Alumina 1.00  0.58 

Magnesia 3.60     2.09 

Soda 1.43  0.83 

Sulphuric  acid 2.79 .    .    .  1.62 

Tarbonic   acid 9.69 5.63 

Chlorine 1.64 95 

Lime..  9.22  .  5.36 


31.87   18.51 

Less  oxygen  equiv.  of  CL. .         .37   20 


Total  solids  120°  C..       31.50.  .18.31 


326  NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS. 

The  probable  hypothetical  combinations  are  as  follows: 

Silica 2.50 1.45 

Alumina 1.00     0.58 

Carbonate  of  lime 16.50  9.65 

C arbonate  of  magnesium. ..  4.64   2.70 

Sodium  chloride 2.69  1 .56 

Water  of  crystalization. ...  4.17   2.37 

Total 31.50 18.31 

The  water  is  good  for  railroad  purposes,  since  it  does  not 

corrode  iron  to  any  appreciable  extent.     Most  of  the  solids 

are  precipitated  on  boiling  and  comes  down  as  sludge,  which 

does  not  stick  to  the  boiler  tubes. 

Estancia  Spring  is  at  the  new  village  of  Estancia,  a  station 

on  the  line  of  the  Santa  Pe  Central  Railway,   in  Tor  ranee 

county. 


CHAPTER  XXXIX. 


TABLE  OF  ALTITUDES. 

The  following  tabulated  list  of  elevations,  which  embrace  a 
number  of  the  most  prominent  land  marks  and  points  in 
New  Mexico,  was  taken  mainly  from  House  Documents  Vol. 
88  of  the  55th  Congress. 

This  volume  is  the  third  edition  of  the  Dictionary  of 
Altitudes,  compiled  by  Mr.  Henry  Gannett,  Geographer  of 
the  U.  S.  Geological  Survey,  under  date  of  January  25,  1899. 
Some  few  points  of  elevation  have  been  added  since  the  time 
of  that  publication,  which  the  Director  or  the  Survey  kindly 
furnished  upon  request. 

The  writer  has  interpolated  some  altitudes  of  his  own 
which  were  made  in  the  fall  of  1893  with  the  spirit  level,  in 
making  a  railway  survey  from  Maxwell  City,  a  point  on  the 
Atchison,  Topeka  and  Santa  Fe  Railway,  westward  to  the 
Rio  Grande,  by  way  of  Cimarron,  to  Moreno  valley  and 
Elizabethtown,  over  the  Taos  Pass,  and  through  Taos.  Two 
observations  were  made  at  Socorro;  the  spirit  level  was  used 
for  the  Weather  Bureau  determination  and  trigonometric 
leveling  for  Socorro  peak.  Some  other  points  in  various 
localities  were  determined  by  the  writer  with  the  aneroid  on 
different  occasions. 

Each  point  with  its  corresponding  altitude  and  authority  is 
here  given: 

STATION  AUTHORITY  ELEVATION 

Abiquiu  Wheeler  5,930 

Abiquiu  Peak  Wheeler  11,240 

Aden  S.  P.  R.  R.  4,388 

Afton  S.  P.  R.  R.  4.204 

Agua  A/ul  Wheeler  6,682 

Agua  Flegra  Wheeler  8,194 

Agua  Fria  Wheeler  6,486 

Agua  Fria  Peak  Wheeler  10,965 

Aguajes  de  los  Guajolotes  Wheeler  6,202 

Agua  Negra  Wheeler  8,194 

Alameda  A.  T.  &.  S.  F.  R.  R.  4,99<> 


328 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS. 


STATION 

Alamillo 
Alamocita 
Alamogordo 
Alamos  a 
Alamo  Station 
Alannelo 
Albert 
Albuquerque 

do 

Alcalde 
Aleman 
Algodones 
Alma 

do 
Alps 
Amargo 
Animas  Peak 
Antelope  Spring 
Anthony 
Anton  Chico 
Apache 

Apache  Cienega 
Apache  Tejo 
Arch  Spring- 
Amy 
Atarque 

Atlantic  &  Pac.  June. 
Azotea 
Aztec 
Azul 

Bacon  Spring 
Baldy  (Elizabeth  Peak) 
Baldy  Peak 
Barranca 
Bayard,  Fort 
Bear  Peak 
Belen 

Berenda  Spring 
Bernal 
Bernai  Hill 
Bernalillo 

do 

Bighorn 
Black  Mountain 
Black  Rock  Tank 
Blethen 
Blossburg 


A  UTHORITY 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 
Wheeler 

E.  P.  &  N.  E.  R.  R. 
Wheeler 
Wheeler 

Whee  lei- 
Weather  Bureau 
A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 
Weather  Bureau 
D.  &  R.  G.  R.  R. 
Wheeler 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 
Weather  Bureau 

F.  A.  Jones 

U.  P.,  D.  &.  G.  R.  R. 

D.  &  R.  G.  R.  R. 

Wheeler 

Wheeler 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

F.  A.  Jones 

Wheeler 

Wheeler 

Wheeler 

Wheeler 

A.  T.  &  S.  P.  R.  R. 

Jones  and  Chadbourne 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

D.  &  R.  G.  R.  R. 

WTeather  Bureau 

A.  T.  &  S,  F.  R   R. 

Wheeler 

Wheeler 

U.  S.  G.  S. 

D.  &  R.  G.  R    R. 

Wheeler 

Wheeler 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

Wheeler 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

U.  S.  G.  S. 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

Weather  Bureau 

D.  &  R.  G.  R.  R. 

Wheeler 

Wheeler 

U.  P.,  D.  &  G.  R.  R. 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 


ELEVATION 
4,651 

4,256 
4,320 
5,177 
6,593 
4.693 
4,700 
4,950 
5,008 
5,694 
4,594 
5,104 
5,500 
5,040 
6,508 
6,994 
6,106 
6,221 
3,789 
5,370 
7,324 
5,291 
5^478 
6,485 
4,519 
7,135 
4,891 
7,708 
5,590 

(Bacon)  6,687 
7,189 
12,491 
12,623 
6,934 
6,068 
8,081 
4,801 
7,494 
6,083 
7,020 
5,048 
5,260 
9,007 
8,909 
4,180 
8,162 
6,857 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS. 


329 


STATION 

AUTHORITY 

ELEVATION 

Bluewater 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  II.  R. 

6,627 

do 

Weather  Bureau 

6,200 

Blue  Water  Spring 

Wheeler 

6,778 

Brookside 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

5.2:{:5 

Buckman 

Weather  Bureau 

8,500 

Bueno  Caballo 

Wheeler 

6.948 

Burgwin  Camp  (  old  ) 

Wheeler 

7.277 

Burke 

U.  P.,  D.  &  G.  R.  R. 

8,225 

Burro  Mountain  (Big-) 

E.  M.  Chadbourne 

7.175 

Cabra  Hill 

U.  S.  G.  S. 

5.2(17 

Caliente 

D.  &  R.  G.  R.  R. 

7,309 

Cambray 

S.  P.  R.  R. 

4.221 

Canyada  Alamosa 

Wheeler 

6,540 

Canyoncito 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

6,870 

Canyon  City 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

5,321 

Canyon  del  Agua 

Wheeler 

5.916 

Canyon  del  Chaco 

Wheeler 

5,839 

C  inyon  Pajarito 

Wheeler 

5,099 

Capitan  Pass 

Wheeler 

7,398 

Capitan  Peak 

Wheeler 

10,023 

Carrizillo  Spring 

Wheeler- 

4,457 

Carrizo  Peak 

Wheeler 

9,390 

Carthage 

A.  T.  £  S.  F.  R.  R. 

5,026 

Casa  Colorado 

Wheeler 

4.IS79 

Caseta 

Wheeler 

6,101 

Catskill 

U.  P.,  D.  &  G.  R.  R. 

7,872 

Carrillos 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

5,084 

Cerro  Blanco 

Wheeler 

14,269 

Cerro  Colorado 

Wheeler 

5,654 

do 

U.  S.  G.  S. 

6,800 

Cerrro  de  Culebra 

Wheeler 

6,992 

Cerro  Pelon 

U.  S.  G.  S. 

6,874 

Cerro  Tecolote 

Wheeler 

7.254 

Ciiama 

D.  &  R.  G.  R.  R. 

7,848 

do 

Weather  Bureau 

7,862 

Chamisal 

Wheeler 

7,527 

Chamita 

D.  &  R.  G.  R.  R. 

f>,626 

Chase  Camp 

Wheeler 

5,374 

Chaves 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

6,987 

Chico  Spring 

Wheeler 

6,882 

Chili 

Wheeler 

5,647 

(  'iboletta 

Wheeler 

6,411 

Cibolo  Hill 

Wheeler 

6,474 

Cienega  Armilla 

Wheeler 

7,179 

Cimarron 

Wheeler 

6,385 

Cieneguilla 

Wheeler 

6,011 

Ciruela 

Wheeler 

6,744 

330 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS. 


STATION 

Clayton 

do 

demon 
Cliff 
Coleman 

Colonas  Perry,  Rio  Grande 
Colorado  Mountain 
Comanche 

Coraanche  Canyon  Pass 
Cone  Peak 
Conrad,  Fort 
Constancia 
Continental  Divide 
Cook,  Mount  (Peak) 
Cooke  Spring- 
Coolidge 
Cooney 
Corazon  Hill 
Corrales 
Costilla  Pass 
Costilla  Peak 
Cottonwood  Spring's 
Covero 
.Cow  Spring- 
Coyote  Spring- 
Coyote  Water  Holes 
Craig-,  Fort 
Crawford 
Cresco 
Crocker 
Cross  Spring 
Cubero 
Cucamonga 
Cuchilla  Negra 
Cuervo  Hill 
Culebra 

Cumming-s,  Fort 
Cutler 

Datil  Range,  Western  Peak 
Defiance,  Fort 
Deming- 

do 

Desert 
Des  Moines 
Detroit 
Diablo  Knoll 
Dillon 


AUTHORITY 

U.  P.,  D.  &  G.  R.  R. 

Weather  Bureau 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

F.  A.  Jones 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

Wheeler 

Wheeler 

D.  &  R.  G.  R.  R. 

Wheeler 

Wheeler 

Medical  Department,  U.  S. 

Wheeler 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

Wheeler 

Mexican  Boundary  Survey 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

F.  A.  Jones 

U.  S.  G.  S. 

Wheleer 

Wheeler 

Hayden 

Wheel  3r 

P.  R.  R.  Reports 

Wheeler 

Wheeler 

Wheeler 

Wheeler 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

D.  &  R.  G.  R.  R. 
A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 
Wheeler 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

Wheeler 

Wheeler 

U.  S.  G.  S. 

Wheeler 

Wheeler 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

Wheeler 

Wheeler 

Weather  Bureau 

S.  P.  R.  R. 

E.  P.  &  N.  E.  R.  R. 
U.  P.,  D.  &  G.  R.  R. 
A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 
Wheeler 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R   R. 


ELEVATION 

5,054 
5,178 
5,503 
4,522 
4,373 
7,443 
5.654 
(5,507 
8.284 
12,690 
A.  4,571} 
4,711 
7,243 
8.300 
4.326 
6.996 
5.840 
0,228 
5,091 
10.188 
12.634 
4,773 
5j880 
5.001 
7.202 
6.775 
4,4-18 
4,724 
9,178 
4.7_4 
6,265 
5,924 
5.9  4 
4,568 
5.309 
5.707 
4.77S 
4.703 
9,440 
7,042 
4,315 
4,331 
4.075 
6,622 
4,008 
7,617 
6,471 


NEW   MEXICO   MINES   AND   MINERALS. 


331 


STATION 

Dog  Canyon 

Dona  Ana 

Dorsey 

Dover 

Dovvlin  Mill 

Dripping  Springs 

Dulce 

Eddy 

El  Cuervo  Butte 

El  Valle 

Elizabeth  Peak  (Baldy ) 

Elizabethtown 

Elk  Spring 

Eltnoro 

Elota 

El  Puerto  de  la  Laguna 

El  Rito 

Embudo 

Emery  Gap 

Engle 

do 

Escobas  Peak 
Escondido 
Espanola 

do 

Esteros 
Eureka 

Eureka  Springs 
Fairbell  Hill 
Florida 
Florida  Pass 
Florida  Peak 
Folsom 

Foraker's  Ranch 
Fort  Bayard 
Fort  Union 
Fort  Wingate 
Fra  Cristobal 
Frisco 
Pulton 
Gage 
Galisteo 

do 

Gallinas  Peak 
Gallinas  Spring 
Gallo  Spring 
Gallup 


AUTHORITY 

E.  P.  &  N.  E.  R.  R. 
A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 
A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 
A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 
Wheeler 
Wheeler 

D.  &  R.  G.  R.  R. 
Weather  Bureau 
U.  S.  G.  S. 

E.  P.  &N.  E.  R.  R. 
Wheeler 
Wheeler 
Wheeler 
Wheeler 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

Wheeler 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

D.  &  R.  G.  R.  R. 
U.  P.  D.  &G.  R.  R. 
A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 
Weather  Bureau 
Wheeler 

E.  P.  &  N.  E.  R.R. 
D.  &  R.  G.  R.  R. 
Weather  Bureau 
Wheeler 
Wheeler 
Wheeler 
Wheeler 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

P.  R.  R.  Reports 

Wheeler 

U.  P.,  D.  &  G.  R.  R. 

U.  S.  G.  S. 

Weather  Bureau 

Weather  Bureau 

Weather  Bureau 

Wheeler 

Jones'  &  Chadbourne 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

S.  P.  R.  R. 

Wheeler 

Weather  Bureau 

Wheeler 

Wheeler 

Wheeler 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 


ELEVATION 

4,025 
3,916 

5,900 
5,834 
6,435 
5,623 
6,764 
3,122 
6,968 
5,380 
12,491 
8,465 
7,415 
7,414 
5,140 
7,187 
5,657 
5,€06 
6,462 
4.762 
4,750 
8,278 
4,015 
5,575 
5,590 
5,320 
4,746 
4,239 
6,589 
4,501 
4,600 
7,295 
6,399 
5.773 
6.040 
6,750 
(>.l)4<) 
6*646 
5,900 
6,542 
4,480 
6,117 
6,074 
9,798 
7,673 
7.5^7 
6,498 


332 


NEW    MEXICO   MINES  AND   MINERALS. 


STATION 

Garcia  Peak 

Georgetown 

Geyser  Spring 

Gila 

Gila  Hotel 

Glorieta 

Gold  Hill 

Graham 

Grama 

Grande 

Gran  Quivira 

Grant 

Greenville 

Guadalupita 

Gusano 

Guy  Fawkes 

Hachita  Peak 

Hanover  Peak 

Hatch 

Hedionda  Lake 

Hendrick  Peak 

High  Peak 

High  Rolls 

Hillsboro 

do 

Horse  Springs 
Hosta  Butte 
Hot  Springs 

Hot  Srings,  Diamond  Creek 
Hudson 
Hueco 

Hurricane  Rock 
Indian  Agency,  near  Blazier  Hill 
Isleta 
Jarilla 

Jemez  Mountain 
Jemez  Peak 
Jemez  Pueblo 
Jicarilla 
Johnson's  Lake 
Juanita 
Juan  Lujan 
Kelly 

Kettle  Spring 
Kingman 
Kiowa  Spring 
Labajada 


AUTHORITY 

Wheeler 

Wheeler 

Wheeler 

Weather  Bureau 

U.  S.  G.  S. 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

F.  A.  Jones 

U.  S.  G.  S. 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

U.  P.  D.  &  G.  R.  R. 

Wheeler 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

TT.  P.  D.  &  G.  R.  R. 

Wheeler 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

Wheeler 

Wheeler 

Wheeler 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

Wheeler 

Wheeler 

Wheeler 

E.  P.  &  N.  E.  R.  R. 

tt  heeler 

Weather  Bureau 

Wheeler 

U.  S.  G.   S. 

Wheeler 

Wheeler 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

E.  P.  &  N.  E.  R.  R. 

Wheeler 

Wheeler 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

E.  P.  &  N..  E.  R.  R. 

Wheeler 

Wheeler 

Wheeler 

U.  S.  G.  S. 

E.  M.  Chadbourne 

D.  &  R.  G.  R.  R. 

Wheeler 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

Wheeler 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

Wheeler 

Wheeler 


ELEVATION 

9,920 
6,455 
5,400 
4,040 
4,470 
7,432 
5.770 
5,102 
4,342 
6,408 
6,407 
6,458 
5,952 
7,677 
7,243 
6,700 
8,352 
7,396 
4,050 
7,149 
7,574 
9,434 
6,550 
5,224 
5,100 
7,045 
8,837 
5,065 
5,545 
4,910 
4,033 
6;479 
6,447 
4,898 
4,170 
9,534 
8,569 
5,479 
12,944 
7,000 
6,326 
6,011 
7,149 
4,540 
6,821 
7,226 
5,515 


NEW    MEXICO   MINES   AND   MINERALS. 


STATION 
Labella 
Labolsa 
Lachusca 
Lad  i  ones  Peak 
La  Glorieta 
Laguna 

Laguna  del  Ojo  Hediondo 
Laguna  Gallinas 
Laguno  Los  Griegos 
La  jar  a  Valley 
La  Joy  a 
Lake  Peak 
LaLacha  Spring- 
La  Laguna  de  Sal 
La  Luz 
La  Monica 
Lamy 
Lanark 
Lansing- 
La  Placita 
Las  Cruces 

do 

Las  Lunas 
Las  Tapiecitas 
La  Tenaja 
Las  Tenajas 
Las  Truchas  Mountain 
Las  Tusas 
Las  Veg-as 

LaB  Vegas  Hot  Springs 
Laugfhlin  Peak 
Lava 
La  Veta 
L.  C.  Ranch 
Leidendorf  Wells 
Levy 
Lisbon 
Llano 

Llano  Spring 
Lobato 
Lone  Mountain 

do 
Lords burg 

do 

Los  Alamos 
Los  Brazos 
Los  Chaves 


AUTHORITY 

ELEVATION 

Weather  Bureau 

9,626 

Wheeler 

5,829 

Wheeler 

6,703 

Wheeler 

9,214 

Wheeler 

7,048 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

5,786 

Wheeler 

7,181 

Wheeler 

6,393 

Wheeler 

(5  {)."><> 

Wheeler 

6.98S 

A.  T.  &  S    P.  R.  R. 

4,702 

U.  S.  G.  S. 

12,380 

Wheeler 

4,756 

Wheeler 

6,047 

E.  P.  &  N.  E.  R.  R. 

4,836 

Wheeler 

7,735 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

6,475 

S.  P.  R.  R. 

4.162 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

7,070 

Wheeler 

5,129 

A.  T.  &  S.  F,  11.  R. 

3,888 

Weather  Bureau 

3,500 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

4,848 

Wheeler 

8,810 

Wheeler 

4,701 

Wheeler 

4,749 

Wheeler 

13,150 

Wheeler 

7,537 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  11.  R. 

6,398 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

(5,726 

Wheeler 

8,950 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

4.720 

Wheeler 

6,266 

F.  A.  Jones 

4,500 

Wheeler 

(5.401 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

6,255 

S.  P.  R.  R. 

4,275 

Wheeler 

7.452 

Wheeler 

5,348 

D.  &  R.  G.  R.  R. 

8,288 

U.   S.  G.  S. 

7,310 

Wheeler 

5.986 

S.  P.  R.  R. 

4.2-12 

Weather  Bureau 

4,245 

Wheeler 

6,789 

Wheeler 

7,321 

Wheeler 

4,775 

834 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES  AND   MINERALS. 


STATION 

Los  Cornudos 

Los  Lunas 

Los  Machos 

Los  Ojos  (Rio  Chama) 

Los  Pinos 

Los  Quelites 

Lower  Penasco 

Luceros 

Luera  Springs 

Lumber  Spur 

Luna 

Lyndon 

Lynn 

McAlpine 

McCarty 

McEver  Ranch 

McRae,  Fort 

Macho  or  Mule  Springs 

Magdalena 

Magdalen  a  Pass 

Magdalena  Mount 

Malpais  Springs 

Mangas  Spring 

Manuelito 

Manzanares 

Manzano 

Manzano  Peak 

Marcy,  Fort 

Martinez  Mesa 

M  axwell 

Mesa  Agua  Segura 

Mesa  Cherisco 

Mesa  Huerfana 

Mesa  Jacinto 

Mesa  Pino 

Mescalero  Agency 

Mesquite 

Mesteno 

Metcalfe's  Ranch 

M  hub  res  B\>rks 

Mimbres 

Mimbres  Mountain 

Mimbres  Settlement 

Mogollon  Creek  (mouth) 

Monero 

do 
Monica  Springs 


AUTHORITY 

Wheeler 

Weather  Bureau 

Wheeler 

Wheeler 

Wheeler 

Wheeler 

Weather  Bureau 

Wheeler 

Wheeler 

D.  &  R.  G.  R.  R. 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

U.  P.,  D.  &  G.  R.  R. 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

Wheeler 

Wheeler 

Wheeler 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

Wheeler 

Wheeler 

Wheeler 

Wheeler 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

Wheeler 

Wheeler 

Medical  Department,  U. 

Wheeler 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

U.  S.  G.  S. 

U.  S.  G.  S. 

U.  S.  G.  S. 

U.  S.  G.  S. 

U.  S.  G.  S. 

Wheeler 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

Wheeler 

F.  A.  Jones 

Wheeler 

Wheeler 

Wheeler 

VTheeler 

U.  S.  G  S. 

D.&  R.  G.R.  R. 

Weather  Bureau 

Wheeler 


ELEVATION 

4,362 
4,900 
7,290 
7,273 
4,675 
5,134 
5,250 
7,941 
7,585 
7,991 
5,281 
3,795 
7,529 
7,937 
6,161 
5,086 
4,395 
5,261 
6.557 
4,755 

10,798 
4,106 
4,799 
6,252 
6,586 
6,961 

10,086 

S.  A.  6,846 
6,820 
6,078 
6,044 
5,303 
6,455 
6,701 
5,502 
6,475 
3,832 
6,399 
4,735 
7,563 
4,920 

10,061 
5,007 
4,650 
7,263 
7,356 
7,602 


NEW    MEXICO   MINES  AND   MINERALS. 


835 


STATION 

Moolen  Peak 
Mora  Canyon 
Mosca  Peak 
Mound  Spring 
Mountain  Key  Mill 
Mount  Dora 
Mule  Spring- 
Mule  Springs 
Naeimiento 
Nacimiento  Peak 
Nam  be  Pueblo 
Navajo 
Neides  Spring- 
New  Placer 
New  York  Mountain 
Nig-ger  Head  Spring- 
No  Ag-ua 
Nog-al  Peak 
North  Franklin  Peak 
Nutria 

Nutria  Spring- 
Nutrites  Plaza 
Nutt 

Oak  Spring- 
Oak  Spring-, Encinoso 
Ooate 
do 

Ocate  Crater 
Ojitos  de  las  Cuevas 
Ojo  Amarillo 
Ojo  Caliente 
Ojo  Camaleon 
Ojo  Datil 
Ojo  do  la  Estancia 
Ojo  de  Inez 
Ojo  de  la  Casa 
Ojo  de  la  Culebra 
Ojo  del  Alto  Peak 
Ojo  de  la  Parida 
Ojo  de  la  Quinca 
Ojo  de  las  Canas 
Ojo  de  la  Tunisa 
Ojo  del  Cibolo 
Ojo  del  Indio 
Ojo  de  los  Cazos 
Ojo  del  Oso 
Ojo  de  los  Valles 


AUTHORITY  KLFA'ATION 

King-  7,339 

Wheeler  6,528 

Wheeler  9,723 

Wheeler  4,336 

U.  S.  G.  S.  6,569 

U.  P.  D.&  G.  R   R.                            5,676 

Wheeler  5,282 

Wheeler  5,652 

Wheeler  7,300 

Wheeler  10.045 

Wheeler  6,045 

D.  &  R,  G.  R.  R.  6,573 

Mexican  Boundary  Survey  4,310 

Wheeler  6,667 

Wheeler  10.594 

WTheeler  4,861 

D.  &  R.  G.  R.  R.  8,190 

Wheeler  9,983 

Wheeler  7,070 

Wheeler  6,901 

Wheeler  6,934 

Wheeler  7,455 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R.                           4,706 

Wheeler  5,243 

Wheeler  7,204 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R.                           5,939 

Weather  Bureau  7,500 

WTheeler  8,903 

Wheeler  5,902 

Wheeler  6,384 

Wheeler  6,292 

Wheeler  6,401 

Wheeler  7,419 

Wheeler  6,177 

Mexican  Boundary  Survey  5,293 

Wheeler  6.243 

Wheeler  5,707 

Wheeler  6,950 

Wheeler  4,929 

Wheeler  5,973 

Wheeler  5,131 

Wheeler  5,673 

Wheeler  5,749 

Wheeler  9,280 

Wheeler  7  ,<)!"> 

Wheeler  7,786 

Wheeler  6,979 


336 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS. 


STATION 

Ojo  del  Perro 

Ojo  de  Nuestra  Seiiora 

Ojo  de  la  Vaca 

Ojo  de  la  Vaca 

Ojo  del  Gallo 

Ojo  del  Milagro 

Ojos  Calientes 

Onava 

Organ  Mountain 

Organ  Mountain  Pass 

Ortiz 

Ortiz  Mountains 

Oscura  Water  Holes 

Osha  Peak 

Otero 

Palmilla     . 

Palomas 

Paraje 

Parida 

Patero 

Pec  os 

Pedernal  Pass 

Pedernal  Peak 

Pedernal  Water  Hole 

Pelado  Peak 

Pena  Blanca 

Peiiasco 

Peralta 

Pescado  Spi  ing 

Picacho  Crossing 

Picacho  de  Sabinal 

Picacho  Peak 

Picuris  Pueblo 

Pinos  Altos 

Pinos  Altos 

Pinos  Altos  Peak 

Pintado  Pueblo 

Pinto 

Placer  Mountain 

Plaza  del  Alcalde 

Plaza  Mangoes 

Pleasanton 

Point  of  Hocks 

Pojoaque 

Polvadero  Peak 

Ponil  Pass 

Pope 


A  UTHORITY  ELK V  A  T10N 

Mexican  Boundary  Survey  4,692 

Wheeler  6,606 

Mexican  Boundary  Survey  4,989 

Wheeler  6.964 

Wheeler  7,943 

Wheeler  5.173 

Wheeler  5,594 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R.                           0,745 

Wheeler  9,108 

P.  R.  R.  Reports  5,467 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R.                          5,836 

U.  S.  G.  S.  8,928 

Wheeler  5,461 

Wheeler  10,223 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R.                           6,394 

D.  &  R.  G.  R.  R,  8,241 
Wheeler  4,127 
Wheeler  4,319 
Wheeler  4,627 
Wheeler  (5,123 
Emory  6,366 
Wheeler  7,181 
Wheeler  7,580 
Wheeler  7,140 
Wheeler  11,260 
Wheeler  5,170 
Wheeler  7,452 
Wheeler  4,661 
Wheeler  6,546 
Wheeler  3,784 
Wheeler  4,676 
Wheeler  4,825 
Wheeler  7,108» 
Wheeler  6,845 
U.  S.  G.  S.  7,041 
Wheeler  8,128 
Wheeler  6,506 

E.  P.  &  N.  E.  R.  R.                          5,953 
Wheeler  8,827 
Wheeler  5,756 
Wheeler  7,319 
U.  S.  G.  -.  4,569 
Wheeler  4,268 
Wheeler  5,750 
Wheeler  7,328 
Wheeler  9,844 
A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R.  4,574 


NEW    MEXICO   MINES   AND   MINERALS. 


33' 


STATION 

Posos  del  Pino 

Powell,  Mount 

Pueblo  Colorado 

Pueblo  Springs 

Puertocito  Spring 

Puerto  de  Luna 

Punia  del  Agua 

Punta  de  la  Mesa  de  San  Jose 

Punta  del  Salitre 

Punta  Pajarita 

Pyramid 

Pyramid  Hill 

Quelites 

Ralston 

Randall 

Katon 

do 

Raton  Tunnel 
Ray  ado 
Real  Dolores 
Recas 
Red  Bluff 
Red  Rock 
Rincon 

do 

Rinconada 
Rio  Puerco 
Rito  Mangos 
Rito  Quemado 
Roblado  Peak 
Rockspring 
Rogers 
Romero 
Rosario 
Roswell 

do 

Royce 
Sabinctl 

Sabinal  Agency 
Salado 
Salinas  Peak 
Salt  Lake  (crater) 
San  Antonio 
San  Antonio  Peak 
San  Antonio  Valley 
San  Augustine 
San  Augustine  Pass 


AUTHORITY 

Wheeler 
U.  S.  G.  S. 
Wheeler 
Wheeler 
Wheeler 

Weather  Bureau 
Wheeler 
U.  S.  G.  S. 
U.  S.  G.  S. 
U    S.  G.  S. 
S.  P.  R.  R. 
Wheeler 
Wheeler 
Wheeler 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R    R. 
A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 
Weather  Bureau 
A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 
W  heeler 
Wheeler 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 
P.  V.  R.  R. 
Jones  &  Chadbourne 
A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 
Weather  Bureau 
Wheeler 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 
Wheeler. 
Whee  lei- 
Wheeler 
Wheeler 
S.  P.  R.  R. 
A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 
A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 
P.  V.  R.  R. 
Weather  Bureau 
U.  P.  D..  &  G.R.  R. 
A.  T.  &.  S.  F.  R.  R. 
Wheeler 
Wheeler 
Wheeler 
F.  A.  Jones 
A.  T.  &   S.  F.  R.  R. 
Hayden 
Wheeler 
Wheeler 
Wheeler 


i  :LK  VATION 
6,055 
8,851 
6,368 
6,363 
(5,499 
5,350 
6,599 
7,667 
6,719 
7,677 
4,298 
6,628 
5.193 
4.488 
3,964 
6,637 
6.400 
7.623 
6,946 
6,802 
7,(,C6 
2,877 
4.  ICO 

4  (31 
4. (30 
5,frL!) 
5,0,14 
7.319 
6,827 

5  575 
6,849 
3.725 
6,303 
5,417 
3,565 
3,570 
5,320 
4,758 
4.757 
6,321 
9,040 
6,500 
4,534 

10,833 
8,367 
6,002 
5,654 


538 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS. 


STATION 

San  Augustine  Plain 

Sandia  Mountains 

San  Domingo 

Sands 

San  Felipe 

San  Francisco  Plaza, 

do, 

do, 

do,  Plaza,  Ric 
San  Geronimo 
San  Ignacio 
San  Ildefonso 
San  Isidro 
San  Jose 
San  Juan    % 
San  Lorenzo  . 
San  Lorenzo  Spring 
San  Luis  Rey 
San  Marcial 
San  Marcial 
San  Marcos  Spring 
San  Mateo 
San  Miguel 
San  Nicolas  Spring 
San  Pedro 

San  Pedro  Mountains 
San  Rafael 
Santa  Ana 

Santa  Clara  Mountain 
Santa  Cruz 
Santa  Fe 

do 

Santa  Fe  Baldy  Peak 
Santo  Nino  del  Rincon 
Santa  Rita  Copper  Mines 
Santa  Rita  del  Cobre 
Sapello 
Selden 
Sellers 
Separ 
Servilleta 
Shattucks  Ranch 
Sherman  Camp  (old) 
Shoemaker 
Silver  City 

do 
Silver  City  Springs 


AUTHORITY 

ELEVATION 

Wheeler 

6,780 

Wheeler 

10,609 

Wheeler 

5,190 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

6,403 

Wheeler 

5,007 

upper 

Wheeler 

5,688 

lower 

Wheeler 

5,639 

middle 

Wheeler 

5,638 

Puerco 

Wheeler 

5,444 

Wheeler 

6,724 

Wheeler 

5,515 

Wheeler 

5,457 

Wheeler 

5,460 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

5,448 

Wheeler 

_    5,601 

Wheeler 

6,107 

Wheeler 

5,326 

Wheeler 

5,152 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

4,454 

Weather  Bureau 

4,554 

Wheeler- 

6,056 

Wheeler 

7,323 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

6,036 

Wheeler 

4,218 

Wheeler 

4,488 

U.  S.  G.  S. 

8,375 

Wheeler 

6,509 

Wheeler 

5,346. 

L 

Wheeler 

11,507 

Wheeler 

5,590 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

6,954 

Weather  Bureau 

7,013 

Wheeler 

12,661 

i 

Wheeler 

7,418 

nes 

Wheeler 

6,161 

Mexican  Boundary  Survey 

6,106 

Wheeler 

6,876 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

3,954 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

4,512 

S.  P.  R.  R. 

4,500 

D.  &  R.  G.  R.  R. 

7,713 

\Veather  Bureau 

6,000 

\Vheeler 

6,927 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

6,271 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

5;851 

U.  S.  G.   S. 

5^933 

Wheeler 

7,638 

NEW   MEXICO   MINES  AND   MINERALS. 


339 


STATION 

S  locum 

Smith 

Socorro 

do 
Socorro  Peak 

do 

Soled  ad 

South  Florida  Peak 
South  Oscura  Mountain 
South  Sandia  Peak 
Springer 

do 

Stanton,  Fort,  (flag-staff) 
Steeple  Bock 
Stinking  Springs 
Strauss 
Sublette 
Sulzbacher 
Sunday  Peak 
Sweetwater  Spring 
Tanques  de  Canoncito 
Tanques  de  las  Animas 
Taos 
do 
do 

Taos  Pass 

Taos  Peak 
Tapiacetas 
Taylor,  Mount 
Tecolote 
Tetilla  Peak 
Thomas,  Mount 
Thompson  Peak 
Thompson  Spring 
Thorn,  Fort 
Thunder  Peak 
Tierra  Amarilla 
Tijeras 
Tipton 

Toboggan  Gulch 
Toltec 

do— Tunnel  No.  2 
Tomascenos  Water  Holes 
Tome 

Torreon  Spring 
Torres 


AUTHORITY 

ELEVATION 

Wheeler 

4,519 

U.  P.,  D.  &  G.  R.  R. 

7,591 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

4,582 

Weather  Bureau  (  F.  A  . 

Jones)      4,600 

Wheeler 

7,281 

F.  A.  Jones 

7,258 

E.  P.  &  N.  E.  R.  R. 

4,096 

Wheeler 

7,261 

Wheeler 

7,832 

Wheeler 

8,567 

A.  T,  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

5,783 

Weather  Bureau 

5,857 

Wheeler 

6,151 

U.  S.  G.  S 

5,133 

Wheeler 

6,249 

S.  P.  R.  R. 

4,080 

D.  &  R.  G.  R.  R. 

9,261 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

5,9.0 

Wheeler 

6,030 

Wheeler 

6,343 

Wheeler 

5,083 

Wheeler 

6,404 

Wheeler 

6,983. 

F.  A.  Jones 

7,078 

Weather  Bureau 

6,98^ 

j  Wheeler 

9,282 

(  F.  A.  Jones 

9,353 

Wheeler 

13,145 

Wheeler 

8,870 

U.  S.  G.  S. 

11,389 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

5,861 

Wheeler 

7,060 

Wheeler 

11,275 

U.  S.  G.  S. 

10,546 

Wheeler 

7,607 

Medical  Department  U. 

S.  A.        4,500 

Wheeler 

9,122 

Wheeler 

7,466 

Wheeler 

b,214 

A.  T.  &.S.  F.  R.  R. 

6,380 

E.  P.  &N.  E.  R.  R. 

7,725 

D.  &  R.  G.  'R   R. 

9,450 

D.  &  R.  G.  R.  R. 

9,622 

Wheeler 

5,502 

Wheeler 

4,879 

Wheeler 

5,980 

U.  S.  G.  S. 

6,775 

340 


NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND   MINERALS. 


STATION 

Tres  Cerros  Spring 

Tres  Hermanas  Peak 

Tres  Piedras 

Triplets 

Truchas 

Truchas  Peak 

Tularosa,  Fort  (old) 

Tunica  Mesa 

Tunis 

Turquoise 

Union,  Fort 

United  States  Mountain 

Up  ham 

Upper  Abo  Pass 

Ute  Park 

Ute  Peak 

Valencia 

Valley  Ranch 

Valverde 

Van  Brummer 

Vasquez 

Vegas  Village 

Venado  Spring 

Vermejo 

Vincent,  Camp 

Volcano 

Wagon  Mound 

Waldo 

Wallace 

Warm  Spring 

Water  Canyon 

Watrous 

Watson 

Webster,  Fort 

West  Callinas  Mountains 

West  Jicarilla  Cone 

White  Sands 

White  Oaks 

Whiteoak  Spring 

Whitewater 

Whitney 

Wilder 

Willow  Spring 

Wilna 

Wingate 

Wingate,  Fort 

Winsor's  Ranch 


AUTHORITY 

Wheeler 
Wheeler 

D.  &  R.  G.  R.  R. 
Wheeler 
Wheeler 

U.  S.  G,  S. 
Wheeler 
Wheeler 
S.  P.  R.  R. 

E.  P.  &  N.  E.  R.  R. 
Wheeler 

Medical  Department.  U. 
A.  T.  &  S.  F,  R.  R. 
Wheeler 

F.  A.  Jones 
Wheeler 
Wheeler 

Weather  Bureau 
A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 
Wheeler 

U.  P.,  I).  &  G.  R.  R. 

Emory 

Wheeler 

Wheeler 

Wheeler 

D.  &  R.  G.  R.  R. 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

Wheeler 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

Medical  Department,  U. 

Wheeler 

Wheeler 

Wheeler 

Weather  Bureau 

Wheeler 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

A.  T.  &  S.  F.  R.  R. 

U.  P.,  D.  &  G.  R.  R. 

Wheeler 

S.  P.  R.  R. 

A.  T.  &  S.F.R.  R. 

U.  S.  G.  S. 

Weather  Bureau 


S.  A 


ELEVATION 

6,128 
7,151 

8,073 
4,347 
7,622 

13,275 
6,740 
5,510 
4,419 
4,103 
6,711 

10,734 
4,554 
6,431 
7,706 

10,151 
4,980 
7,000 
4,486 
8,557 
8,711 
6,418 
5,982 
7,823 
6,188 
8,872 
6,193 
5,621 
5,263 
5,008 
6,008 
6,413 
4,510 
6,350 
8,464 
7,727 
3,888 
6,470 
6,618 
5,151 
4,367 
7,848 
6,677 
4,554 
6.736 
6,997 
8,000 


S.  A 


NEW    MEXICO   MINES  AND   MINERALS. 


341 


STATION 

Winter  Spring- 
Woolen 
Yucca,  Camp 
Yule  Spring 
Zufii 


AUTHORITY 

Wheeler 

E.  P.  &  N.  E.  R.  K. 

Wheeler 

Wheeler 

S.  P.  R.  R. 


ELEVATION 

7,182 

7.071 
4,374 
5,925 
4,184 


CHAPTER  XL. 


CENSUS  OF  NEW  MEXICAN   MINERALS. 


Mineral 

Common  Name 

Locality 

Alabandite 

Manganese  sulphide 

San  Pedro  copper  mines 

Alabaster 

Oriental  onyx-marble 

Jones  mining  district 

Actinolite 

Me.  -lime-iron  amphibole 

Jones  iron  mines,  Sierra  Oscura 

Agate 

Water  stones 

San  Mateo  and  Sangre  de  Cristo  Mts. 

Albite 

Soda  feldspar 

Various  mountain  ranges 

Almandite 

Iron-aluminum  garnet 

San  Pedro  copper  mines 

Allophane 

Incrusted  hyd.  Al.  sil. 

Fierro  and  Hiinover 

Alunogen 

Alum 

Upper  Gila  and  elsewhere 

Amethyst 

Amethystine  quartz 

Black  range,  Great  Republic  mine 

Andradite 

Iron-lime  garnet 

Organ  and  Cieneguilla  districts 

Anglesite 

Sulphate  of  lead 

Victorio  mining  district 

Anhydrite 

Dehydrated  gypsum 

Metamorphosed  by  lava  flows 

Anorthite 

Lime  feldspar 

Various  mountain  ranges 

Anthracite 

Hard  or  stone  coal 

Madrid  mines,  Cerrillos  district 

Anthraconite 

Stinkstone 

Tejon  and  Quelites  grants 

Apatite 

Phosphate  of  lime 

Lake  Valley  and  Hillsboro  regions 

Aragonite 

Lime  spar 

Kingston  camp  and  Graphic  mine 

Argentite 

Silver  glance 

Kingston  and  Bromide  district 

Arsenopyrite 

Mispickel 

Virginia  mining  district 

Asbestus 

Mineral  fiber 

Mimbres  mining  district 

Asphaltum 

Asphalt,  mineral  pitch 

Perea  grant,  Leonard  Wood  county 

Aurichalcite 

Copper-zinc  carbonate 

Magdalena  mining  district 

Automolite 

Spinel  (form  of) 

Santa  Fe  mountains 

Azurite 

Blue  carb.  of  copper 

Santa  Rita  copper  mines 

Barite 

Baryta,  heavy-spar 

Mimbres  mining  district 

Baryto-calcite 

Carb.  barium  and  lime 

Sierra  Oscura 

Baryto-celestite 

Sulphate  of  Ba.  &  Sr. 

Sierra  Oscura 

Biotite 

Black  mica 

Ojo  Caliente,  Rio  Arriba  county 

Bismuthinite 

Bismuth  trisulphide 

Wilcox  mining  district  (?) 

Bloedite 

Hyd.-Mg.  &  Na.  Sulphate 

Estancia  salt  lake 

Bornite 

Peacock  copper 

Black  range  and  Cooney  districts 

Bournonite 

Wheel  ore 

Los  Cerrillos  and  Central  districts 

Brochantite 

Basic  copper  sulphate 

Torpedo  mine,  Organ  district 

Bromyrite 

Silver  bromide 

Bromide  (Tierra  Blanca)  district 

Brookite 

Rutiie 

Copper  Mountain  district 

Bucklandite 

Iron  epidote 

San  Pedro  copper  mines 

Calamine 

Silicate  of  zinc 

Thunderbolt  mine  and  Magdalena  Mts. 

Calaverite 

Telluride  of  gold 

La  Belle  and  Red  River  districts 

Calcio-celestite 

Sulphate  of  Ca.  &  Sr. 

Sierra  Oscura 

Calcite 

Gale-spar,  limestone 

Kelly  and  Graphic  mines 

Caliche 

Lime  deposit  (Mexican) 

Common  to  New  Mexican  plains 

Carnelian 

Red  chalcedony 

Found  in  various  gravel  beds 

Carnotite 

Uranium  oxide  (yellow) 

Peralta  canyon,  Cochiti  district 

Catlinite 

Indian  pipe  clay  (red) 

Sangre  de  Cristo  range  (?) 

Celestite 

Strontium  sulphate 

Sierra  Oscura  and  San  Andreas  Mts. 

Cerargyrite 

Horn  silver 

Lake  Valley  and  Kingston  mines 

Cerium 

One  of  the  rare  metals 

Gravels  of  Rio  Chama  (?) 

Cerussite 

Lead  carbonate 

Cooks  Peak  and  Magdalena  districts 

Cervantite 

Oxide  of  antimony 

Central  district,  Grant  county 

Chalcedony 

Waxy  quartz  (in  luster) 

Widely  distributed  over  New  Mexico 

Chalcocite 

Copper  glance 

Santa  Rita  and  Cooney  mines 

Chalcopyrite 

Pyrites  of  copper 

Coouey  mine  and  elsewhere 

Chalcotrichite 

Rare  copper  oxide 

Santa  Rita  mines 

Chert 

Flint 

Common  in  gravel  beds 

Chrysocolla 

Silicate  of  copper 

Torpedo  mine,  Organ  district 

Chrysolite 

Olivine  (peridot) 

Zuni  Indian  reservation 

Coal 

Coal 

Occurs  in  Cretaceous  rock  system 

Copper 

Native 

Santa  Rita  Mines 

Corundum 

Sapphire 

Found  in  Santa  Fe  gravels 

Covellite 

Blue  copper  sulphide 

Jarilia  mountains 

Cuprite 

Sed  oxide  of  copper 

Santa  Rita  mines 

Cyanite 

Silicate  of  aluminum 

Bromide  district,  Rio  Arriba  county 

Cymatolite 

Albite-muscovite 

Ojo  Caliente.  Rio  Arriba  county 

Descloizite 

Vanadium-lead-zinc  oxide 

Lake  Valley 

NEW   MEXICO   MINES  AND   MINERALS. 


343 


Mineral 

Common  Name 

Locality 

Diamond 

Diamond  (pure  carbon) 

Said  to  have  been  found  (?) 

Diaptose 

Emerald  copper  (silicate) 

Jarilla  mountains 

Dolomite 

Magnesium  limestone 

Various  mountain  ranges 

Domeykite 

Copper  arsenide 

Pinos  Altos  and  Central  districts 

Embolite 

Chloro-bromide  of  silver 

Lake  Valley  mine 

Emerald 

Beryl  (gem) 

Santa  Fe  gravel  beds 

Emeraudine 

Same  as  diaptose 

Jarilla  mountains 

Enargite 

Copper  arsenide 

Pinos  Altos  and  Central  districts 

Endlichite 

Vanadiferous  mimetite 

Lake  Valley  and  Hillsboro 

Epidote 

Pistacite  (yel-green  var) 

San  Pedro  copper  mines 

Epsomite 

Epsom  suit 

Estancia  lakes 

Erubescite 

A  type  of  bornite 

Black  range,  Cooney  mine 

Euclase 

jem 

Reported  found  ('?; 

Fiorite 

Silicious  sinter 

Fay  wood  and  Socorro  springs 

Flint 

Same  as  chert 

Various  localities 

Fluorite 

B"lour-spar 

Gila  River  and  Sierra  Oscura 

Franklinite 

[ron-zinc-mang.  oxide 

Central  mining  district 

Gahnite 

Variety  of  spinel 

Cerrillos  mining  district 

Galenite 

3alena 

Cooks  Peak  and  Magdalena  districts 

Glauberite 

Sodium-calcium  sulphate 

Estancia  lakes 

Gold 

3old,  placer  and  lode 

Elizabethtown  and  Hillsboro 

Graphite 

Black  lead  (plumbago) 

In  Raton  and  Sandia  mountains 

Grossularite 

Lime-aluminum  garnet 

San  Pedro  and  Organ  mountains 

Guano 

Bat  deposit  (phosphate) 

Extinct  crater,  near  Engle 

Gypsum 

Lime  sulphate  (yeso,  Mex.) 

Ancho  and  plains  of  "white  sands" 

Halite 

Rock  (common)  salt 

Estancia  and  crater  salt  lakes 

Hausraanite 

Oxide  of  maganese 

San  Lorenzo  mining  district 

Hematite 

Specular  (red  oxide)  iron 

Jones  iron  mines  and  elsewhere 

Hubernite 

Tungsten  (wolfram)  ore 

Victorio  mining  district 

Hyalite 

Opal  family 

Central  and  Cochiti  districts 

Hydro-zincite 

Zinc  bloom 

Magdalena  mining  district 

Ilmenite 

Black  iron  ore 

Fierro  and  Hanover 

Ilvaite 

Diorismatic  iron  ore 

Fierro  and  Hanover 

Idocrase 

Vesuvianite 

San  Pedro  and  Organ  Mts. 

lodyrite 

Silver  iodide 

Lake  Valley 

Iridium 

Metallic 

Hillsboro 

Jadeite 

Jade,  ornamental  stone 

Jicarilla  mountains 

Jasper 

Brown  iron  stone  (flint) 

Canyoncito  district 

Jet 

Jet  (for  jewelry) 

Vicinity  of  Santa  Rosa 

Kaolinite 

China  clay  (impure) 

Socorro  mountain 

Labradorite 

Lime-soda  feldspar 

Various  mountain  localities 

Lead 

Found  native  (rare) 

Magdalena  mountains 

Lepidolite 

Pink  lithium  rock 

Cieneguilla  mining  district 

Lieverite 

Same  as  ilvaite 

Hanover  and  Fierro 

Lignite 

Brown  coal 

Gallup  and  elsewhere 

Limonite 

Brown  iron  ore 

North  eud  of  the  Sandias 

Magnetite 

Lode  stone 

Fierro 

Malachite 

Carbonate  of  copper 

Santa  Rita  and  Las  Vegas 

Manganite 

Manganese  sesquioxide 

Lake  Valley 

Manganosite 

Black  oxide  of  manganese 

San  Lorenzo  mining  district 

Marble 

Lime  carbonate 

Near  Alamogordo 

Marcasite 

White  iron  pyrites 

Manzano  mountains 

Marionite 

Hydro-zincite  (calamine) 

Graphic  mine 

Massicot 

Oxide  of  lead 

Chloride  flat 

Melaconite 

Black  oxide  of  copper 

Black  range  and  Santa  Rita 

Melanotekite 

Lead-iron  silicate 

Hillsboro,  Las  Animas  district 

Miargyrite 

Antimony-silver  sulphide 

Kingston  and  Palomas  camps 

Mica 

Isinglass 

Petaca  and  Nambe 

Microcline 

Orthoclase,  potash  felds. 

Various  mountain  ranges 

Millardite 

Hyd.  maganese  sulphate 

Lake  Valley  mine 

Mimetite 

Vanad.  arsenic  chloride 

Socorro  mountain 

Minium 

Red  oxide  of  lead 

Hachita  (Eureka  mining  district) 

Mirabilite 

Glauber  salt 

Estancia  lakes 

Molybdenite 

Molybdenum  trioxide 

San  Miguel  county 

Monazite 

Phos.  of  ihe  cerium  earths 

In  Chama  river  sands  '  (?) 

Moonstone 

Feldspar  silicate 

San  Mateo  mountains 

Muscovite 

White  mica  (isinglass) 

Petaca.  Nambe  and  Talco 

Nickel 

Me'al 

Upper  Pecos  region 

Novaculite 

Whetstone 

Sangre  de  Cristo  mountains 

Obsidian 

Volcanic  glass 

Santn  Fe  mountains 

Ocher 

Paint  rock 

Sandia  mountains  and  San  Pedro 

Octahedrite 

Titanium  oxide  (rutile) 

Central  mining  district 

Odontolite 

Bone  turquoise 

Nacimiento  mountains 

Oligoclase 

Soda-lime  feldspar 

Various  mountain  regions 

344 


NEW    MEXICO   MINES  AND   MINERALS. 


Mineral 

Common  Name 

Locality 

Opal 

Fi'  e  opal  (gem) 

Cochiti  and  Central  districts 

Orthoclase 

Potash  feldspar 

Various  mountain  regions 

Pectolite 

Radiated  fibrous  silicate 

Cieneguilla  district 

Peridot 

Gem  (crysolite,  olivine) 

Zuni  Indian  reservation 

Petalite 

Lithium  ore 

Cieneguilla,  Copper  Mountain  dist. 

Petroleum 

Kerosene  (coal  oil) 

Vicinitv  of  Gallup  and  San  Juan  Co. 

Petzite 

Gold  and  siver  telluride 

Lookout  mine  and  La  Belle  dist. 

Phlogopite 

Brown  mica  (sparingly) 

Nambe 

Pistaeite 

Yellowish-green  epidote 

Red  river 

Platinum 

Metallic 

Tampa  mine,  Bromide  No.  2  district 

Plattnerite 

Lead  dioxide 

Cooks  Peak  and  Central  districts 

Polybasite 

Silver-antimo.  sulphide 

Telegraph  mining  district 

Proustite 

Ruby  silver 

Kingston  and  Bullard's  Pesk 

Przibramite 

Cadmiferous  sphalerite 

Carpenter  mining  district 

Psilomelane 

Manganese  dioxide 

Near  Rincon,  Caballo  mountains 

Pumice 

Filter  stone 

Near  Grant  P  O.  and   Socorro 

Pyrargyrite 

Ruby  silver 

Bullard's  Peak  and  Kingston 

Pyrites 

Cube  iron 

Various  mining  districts 

Pyrolusite 

Black  iron  (mang.  dioxide) 

San  Lorenzo  mining  district 

Pyromorphite 

Lead  phosphate 

Macho  district 

Pvrrostilpite 

Ruby  silver 

Kingston  and  Bullard's  Peak 

Pyrrhotite 

Iron  sulphide 

Fierro  and  Hanover 

Quartz 

Oxide  of  silicon 

In  various  mines 

Rhodocrosite 

Manganese  carbonate 

Graphic  and  Kelly  mines 

Rhodonite 

Manganese  spar  (fowlerite) 

San  Lorenzo  mining  district 

Ricolite 

Rich  stone  (ornamental) 

Gila  river,  near  Red  Rock 

Ruby 

Gem 

Reported  found  at  Zuni  (?) 

Rutile 

Titanium  dioxide 

Central  district 

Satin  spar 

Fibrous  gypsum 

East  of  Strawberry  Peak,  Socorro 

Scheelite 

Calcium  tungstate 

Victoria  mining  district 

Selenite 

Transparent  gypsum 

Pittsburg  district,  Caballo  Mts. 

Siderite 

Spathic  iron  ore 

Granite  Gap  mine 

Silver 

Native 

Silver  Cell  mine 

Smithsonite 

Zinc  carbonate 

Magdalena  mining  district 

Sphalerite 

Zinc  blende  (jack) 

Cerrillos  and  Carpenter  districts 

Spodume 

Lithium  rock  (petalite) 

Cieneguilla  district 

Staurolite 

Cruciform 

Cieneguilla  and  Copper  mountain 

Steatite 

Soapstone 

Various  localities 

Stephanite 

Brittle  silver 

Bromifle  mine,  Rio  Arriba  county 

Sternbergerite 

Silver-iron  sulphide 

Cooney  mining  district 

Stibnite 

Sulphide  of  antimony 

Cerrillos  mining  district 

Stilbite 

A  hydrous  silicate 

Baldy  mountain,  Col  fax  county 

Sulphur 

Native 

Otero  Sulphur  springs 

Sylvanite 

Telluride  of  silver-gold 

Trujillo  Creek.  Sierra  coun'y 

Talc 

Soapstone  (var  ) 

Numerous  localities 

Tennantite 

Copper-arsenic  sulphide 

Pinos  Altos  and  Central  dists. 

Tenorite 

Black  oxide  of  copper 

Santa  Rita  mines 

Tetrahedrite 

Copper-arsenic  sulphide 

Pinos  Altos  and  Central  dists. 

Titanite 

Same  as  rutile 

Central  mining  district 

Ti>rbernite 

Uranium  ore  (rare) 

Jerome  mine,  San  Lorenzo  dist. 

Tourmaline 

Complex  silicate 

Bromide  District  No.  2 

Travertine 

Geyser  formation 

Salt  Lake  crater,  Socorro  county 

Tremolite 

Amphiboje,  hornblende 

Various  mountain  ranges 

Tripoli  te 

[nfusorial  earth 

Reported  near  Socorro  (?) 

Troostite 

Silicate  of  zinc 

Magdalena  mining  district 

Tufa 

Volcanic  mud 

In  eruptive  regions 

Turquoise 

Dsed  as  a  gem 

Cerrillos  and  Burro  districts 

Uranophane 

^are  uranium  ore 

Jerome  copper  mine,  Socorro  coun'y 

Vanadinite 

Vanadate  of  lead 

Georgetown  and  Cerrillos 

Vesuvianite 

[docrase 

San  Pedro  Copper  mine 

Wad 

3og  manganese  ore 

Central  mining  district 

Willemite 

Ziuc  silicate  (troostite) 

Merritt  mine.  Socorro  mountain 

Witherite 

Barium  carbonate 

Sierra  Oscura  and  San  Andreas 

Wolframite 

>on-mang.  tungsten 

Victorio  mining  district 

Wollastonite 

Tabular  spar 

San  Pedro  and  Organ  mountains 

Wulfenite 

Lead  molybdate 

Stephenson-Bennett  mine 

Xanthoconite 

A  sulpharsenite 

Cerrillos  mining  district 

Zaratite 

Emerald  nickel 

San  Miguel  county 

Zoisite 

^.ime  epidote 

San  Pedro  and  Organ  mountains 

Zmcite 

Zinc  oxide 

Magdalena  mountains 

NEW    MEXICO    MINES   AND    MINERALS.  345 

The  foregoing  list  embraces  all  of  what  might  with  propriety 
be  termed  the  metallic  minerals  of  New  Mexico;  so  far  as 
known  at  the  present  time.  This  catalogue,  also,  includes  a 
number  of  the  more  common  mineral  species  of  the  silicates, 
feldspars  and  other  distinctive  types  of  mineral  aggregations. 
Concerning  these  latter  classes,  no  attempt  was  made  to  make 
the  list  complete;  since  such  types  would  refer  more  to  lith- 
ology  than  to  mineralogy. 

It  is  believed  that  the  metallic  list,  proper,  will  be  greatly 
augmented,  by  the  discovery  of  most  all  of  the  rarer  metals, 
when  a  careful  and  systematic  study  is  given  to  the  ores  of 
the  various  mining  districts. 

So  far  as  known,  this  is  the  first  attempt  ever  made  to  cat- 
alogue the  known  metallic  minerals  of  the  territory. 

Statistics. 

Of  late  years,  New  Mexico  has  been  on  the  decline  in  her 
metallic  outputs,  with  the  exception  of  copper,  iron  and  zinc. 

It  might  be  said  that  copper  is  holding  its  own;  iron  is  de- 
cidedly on  the  increase;  and  zinc  has  taken  a  phenomenally 
high  spurt  over  anything  in  its  previous  history.  In  fact,  the 
year  1904  will  give  a  greater  production  of  zinc  than  the  ag- 
gregate of  all  previous  years.  The  increase  is  due  to  the 
large  bodies  of  zinc  carbonate  recently  developed  in  the  Mag- 
dalena  district. 

The  resources  usually  regarded  as  non-metallic  are  all 
steadily  on  the  increase;  as  also  the  manufacture  of  brick 
and  lime.  The  cement  plasters  and  allied  products,  manu- 
factured at  Ancho,  and  the  new  plant  just  completed  at  Ros- 
well,  give  an  impetus  in  the  increased  use  of  the  raw  mate- 
rial required  in  such  manufacture. 

Salt  and  sulphur  are  also  forging  to  the  front. 

Coal  stands  at  the  head  of  the  list  in  New  Mexico's  mineral 
resources,  and  the  output  is  steadily  advancing  at  a  very 
healthy  rate  of  increase. 

As  near  as  can  be  estimated,  the  production  of  gold  in  New 
Mexico  from  the  earliest  time  down  to  January  1,  1904,  is  ap- 
proximately $26,700,000;  that  of  silver  will  approximate  $29,- 
000,000. 

According  to  the  Director  of  the  Mint  the  production  of 


346  NEW    MEXICO   MINES   AND   MINERALS. 

precious  metals  in  1902,  was  gold  25,693  ounces,  valued  at 
$531,100;  silver  457,200  fine  ounces,  valued  at  $591,127. 

The  statistics  of  precious  metal  production  for  1902,  as  given 
by  the  United  States  Geological  Survey  and  also  by  the 
Census  Bureau  make  the  amount  considerably  less  than  the 
Mint  report,  which  latter  report  is  based  on  estimates. 

The  writer  had  charge  of  the  Mining  Census  of  New  Mex- 
ico during  the  year  1902,  in  connection  with  the  U.  S.  Geolog- 
ical Survey  as  Field  Assistant,  and  herewith  gives  the  data, 
as  collected  by  personal  visits  into  the  several  camps  and  dis- 
tricts at  that  time: 

Kind  of  Mine  Value  of  Production 

Coal.... $1,500,230 

Gold 486,545 

Silver    190,623 

Copper 271,270 

Precious  stones 51,600 

Quartzites 12,291 

All  other  minerals  173,914 


Total   value $2,686,473 

It  is  seen  that  the  production  of  coal  is  greater  than  all  of 
the  other  mineral  products  combined. 

Producing  Mines  Number 

Coal 30 

Gold  and  silver  (including-  placers) 91 

Copper 17 

Precious  stones 8 

Quarries 7 

All  others 8 

Total  producing  mines 161 

Number  of  mine  operators 207 

Number  of  salaried  officials   175 

Kind  of  Mine                          No.  wage  earners  Earnings 

Coal 1439  $1,027,460 

Gold   and   silver 519 409,779 

Copper  .....; 164  128,483 

Precious  stones         36  22,087 

Quarries 8 6,515 

All  other  mines 109  52,509 


Total 2275 $1,646,833 


APPENDIX. 


Synopsis  of  the  Mining  Laws  of  the  Territory  of  New  Mex- 
ico Governing  the  Location  and  Relocation 

of  Mining  Claims. 

» 

(By  M.  E.  Hickey.) 
DIMENSION  OF  LODE  CLAIM. 

A  lode  claim  may  be  600  feet  in  width  by  1,500  feet  in  length. 

By  Section  2324,  Revised  Statutes  of  the  United  States,  the  miners  of 
each  mining  district  may  make  regulations  not  in  conflict  with  the 
laws  of  the  United  States,  or  with  the  laws  of  the  State  or  Territory  in 
which  the  district  is  situated,  governing  the  location,  manner  of  re- 
cording and  the  amount  of  work  necessary  to  hold  possession  of  a  min- 
ing claim. 

The  local  regulations  of  some  of  the  mining  districts  in  New  Mexico 
make  the  lode  claim  300  feet  in  width  and  1,500  feet  in  length. 

DIMENSION  OF  PLACER  CLAIM. 

A  placer  claim  may  contain  twenty  acres. 

The  following  references  are  to  the  Compiled  Laws  of  New  Mexico, 
except  where  otherwise  noted. 

Section  2286.  It  is  necessary  in  locating  a  mining  claim,  to  dis- 
tinctly mark  the-boundaries  of  such  claim,  and  to  post  in  some  conspic- 
uous place  on  such  location  a  notice  in  writing  giving  such  a  descrip- 
tion as  will  identify  the  claim,  and  the  names  of  the  locator  or  locators, 
and  his  or  their  intention  of  locating  said  claim. 

A  copy  of  said  notice  must  be  recorded  in  the  office  of  the  recorder 
of  the  county  in  which  said  claim  is  located,  within  three  months  of 
the  posting  of  such  notice.  No  other  record  of  said  notice  is  neces- 
sary. 

Section  2299  (as  amended  by  the  Session  Laws  of  1899,  Section  1, 
Page  111).  Within  120  days  of  the  location  of  any  mining  claim  in  this 
territory,  the  surface  boundaries  of  such  claim  shall  be  marked  by 
four  substantial  posts  or  monuments,  one  at  each  corner  of  said  claim. 

Section  2300.  There-location  of  any  mining  claim  which  is  subject 
to  re-location,  shall  be  made  in  the  same  way  as  an  original  location 
is  required  by  law  to  be  made. 

Section  2301.  If  the  original  location  is  defective  in  any  way  or  the 
requirement  of  law  has  not  been  complied  with  before  filing,  or  if  the 
owner  of  any  mining  claim  shall  bo  desirous  of  changing  his  surface 
boundaries,  or  of  taking  in  any  part  of  an  overlapping  claim  which 
has  been  abandoned,  such  owner  may  file  an  amended  or  additional 


348  NEW    MEXICO   MINES   AND   MINERALS. 

notice  of  location,  provided  such  notice  does  not  interfere  with  the 
rights  of  others. 

Section  2302.  Any  person  who  shall  take  down,  remove,  alter  or 
destroy  any  stake,  post,  monument  or  notice  of  location  upon  any 
mining  claim  without  the  consent  of  the  owner  or  owners  thereof,  shall 
be  deemed  guilty  of  a  misdemeanor,  and  on  conviction,  shall  be  pun- 
ished by  a  fine  not  exceeding  one  hundred  dollars  or  by  imprisonment 
in  the  county  jail  not  exceeding  six  months,  or  by  both  such  fine  and 
imprisonment. 

Section  2311.  Any  person  or  persons,  or  the  manager,  officer,  agent 
or  employe  of  any  person,  firm,  corporation  or  association,  who  shall 
in  any  manner  alter,  deface  or  change  the  location  notice  of  any  min- 
ing claim  in  this  Territory,  located  under  the  laws  of  the  United  States 
or  of  the  laws  of  this  Territory,  or  any  location  regulation  in  force  in  the 
district  wherein  such  claim  is  situated,  thereby  in  any  manner  affecting 
the  rights  of  any  person,  firm  or  corporation,  to  such  claim  or  location, 
or  the  land  covered  thereby,  shall  be  deemed  guilty  of  a  misdemeanor, 
and  upon  conviction  thereof  before  any  court  of  competent  jurisdiction, 
shall  be  fined  in  a  sum  not  less  than  one  hundred  dollars,  nor  more 
than  five  hundred  dollars,  or  imprisonment  in  the  county  jail  for  not 
less  than  sixty  days,  nor  more  than  one  year,  or  by  both  such  fine  and 
imprisonment,  in  the  discretion  of  the  court  trying  the  case.  Nothing 
herein  contained  shall  affect  the  rights  of  such  locator  or  locators,  to 
correct  errors  in  such  notices  as  provided  in  section  twTo  thousand  three 
hundred  and  one,  and  the  laws  of  the  United  States:  Provided,  such 
change  shall  not  affect  or  change  the  date  of  such  location  notice,  or 
affect  the  right  of  any  other  person. 

Section  2298.  The  locator  or  locators  of  any  mining  claim  shall 
within  ninety  days  from  the  date  of  taking  possession  of  the  same,  sink 
a  discovery  shaft,  exposing  mineral  in  place,  or  shall  drive  a  tunnel, 
adit,  or  open  cut  upon  such  claim  to  a  depth  of  at  least  ten  feet  below 
the  surface. 

Section  2300  (latter  part  of  the  section) The  re-locator  of  a  mining 

claim  shall  sink  a  discovery  shaft,  exposing  mineral  in  place  or  shall 
drive  a  tunnel,  adit,  or  open  cut  upon  such  re-located  claim  to  a  depth 
of  ten  feet  below  the  surface,  or  shall  sink  the  original  shaft  ten  feet 
deeper,  or  drive  the  original  tunnel,  adit,  or  open  cut  upon  such  claim 
ten  feet  further. 

Section  2315.  The  owners  of  unpatented  mining  claims  in  New  Mexico 
shall  within  sixty  days  from  and  after  doing  the  assessment  work  which 
is  required  by  law  to  be  done  upon  said  claim,  cause  to  be  filed  with 
the  recorder  of  the  county  in  which  such  mining  claim  is  situated,  an 
affidavit  setting  forth  the  fact  that  all  work  required  by  law  has  been 
done. 

The  annual  assessment  work  must  be  done  each  year  not  later  than 
the  31st  day  of  December  (Rev.  Stats.  U.  S. ). 

On  each  claim,  until  patent  is  issued  therefor,  not  less  than  one 
hundred  dollars  worth  of  labor  shall  be  performed  or  improvements 


NEW    MEXICO   MINES  AND   MINERALS.  849 

made  during' each  year. ..  .When  five  hundred  dollars  worth  of  labor 
has  been  performed,  or  improvements  made,  on  any  mining  claim,  the 
owner  can  get  a  patent  from  the  United  States  for  said  claim  upon  com- 
pliance with  the  laws  governing  the  issuance  of  patents,  and  upon 
payment  to  the  United  States  of  five  dollars  an  acre  for  the  land  con- 
tained in  said  claim.  (Rev.  Stats.  U.  S.). 


vSITY  I 
J 


BIOGRAPHICAL. 


MIGUEL  A.  OTERO,  Governor 


|U  !TY 

Of 


MIGUEL  ANTONIO  OTERO. 


Governor  M.  A.  Ofcero  of  New  Mexico  is  a  descendant  of  an 
old  Spanish  family.  His  father  who  bore  the  same  Christian 
name,  represented  New  Mexico  in  Congress.  Governor 
Otero  was  born  at  St.  Louis  on  October  17,  1859.  He  received 
his  education  at  St.  Louis  University  and  the  University  of 
Notre  Dame.  On  December  18,  1888,  he  married  Caroline  V. 
Emmett,  daughter  of  ex-Chief  Justice  Lafayette  Emmett,  of 
Minnesota.  Mr.  Otero  was  cashier  of  the  San  Miguel  National 
Bank  at  Las  Vegas  from  1880  to  1885.  During  that  time  he 
served  as  treasurer  of  the  city.  He  was  elected  probate 
clerk  of  the  County  of  San  Miguel  and  served  until  1890  after 
which  he  served  three  years  as  clerk  of  the  United  States 
and  territorial  district  courts  of  the  Fourth  Judicial  District 
of  New  Mexico.  Governor  Otero  was  a  delegate  to  the  Re- 
publican national  conventions  of  1892,  1900  and  1904,  being 
chairman  of  the  New  Mexico  delegation  the  latter  two  times. 
On  June  7,  1897,  he  was  appointed  Governor  of  New  Mexico 
by  President  McKinley.  He  was  reappointed  on  June  15, 
1901,  by  President  McKinley  and  reappointed  by  President 
Roosevelt  on  December  18,  1901.  He  approved  the  bill  creat- 
ing the  St.  Louis  Board  of  Louisiana  Purchase  Exposition 
Managers  and  making  an  appropriation  of  $30,000  for  a  New 
Mexico  exhibit,  passed  by  the  35th  legislative  assemblv, 
March,  1903. 


CHAS.  A.  SPIESS,  President. 


CHARLES  A.   SPIESS. 


Charles  A.  Spiess,  president  of  the  New  Mexico  Board  of 
Managers  of  the  Louisiana  Purchase  Exposition,  was  born  in 
Johnson  county,  Missouri,  on  March  19,  1867.  He  attended 
the  public  schools  of  his  native  state  and  graduated  with 
honors  from  the  Missouri  Normal  College.  In  1888  he  came 
to  Las  Vegas,  San  Miguel  county,  being  employed  as  a  clerk. 
Soon  afterwards  he  removed  to  Mora  county  and  served  one 
year  as  deputy  probate  clerk  and  assessor.  Removing  to 
Santa  Fe,  he  completed  his  law  studies  begun  several  years 
before,  was  admitted  to  the  bar  in  1891  and  engaged  in 
the  practice  of  law.  In  1893,  1894  and  1895,  he  served  as 
a  member  of  the  board  of  education  of  the  City  of  Santa  Fe. 
In  1895  he  was  nominated  to  the  legislative  council  by  the 
Republicans  of  Santa  Pe  county  but  was  defeated  by  13  votes 
out  of  a  total  number  of  3,300  cast.  In  1896  he  was  again 
nominated  and  was  elected. 

Governor  Otero  appointed  him  district  attorney  of  the 
Fourth  Judicial  District  with  office  at  Las  Vegas.  He  repre- 
sented the  council  district  of  which  San  Miguel  county  is  a 
part  in  the  legislative  assemblies  of  the  years  of  1901  and 
1903. 

On  September  25,  1895,  Mr.  Spiess  married  Miss  Ruby 
Lynch.  Mr.  Spiess  vacated  the  office  of  district  attorney  by 
expiration  of  term  of  office,  in  March  1903.  He  is  a  member 
of  the  Board  of  Regents  of  the  Normal  University  of  New 
Mexico  at  Las  Vegas;  and  practices  his  profession  in  that 
city. 


CARL  A.  DALIES,  Vice-President. 


CARL  A.   DALIES. 


Carl  A.  Dalies,  is  the  son  of  a  German  Lutheran  clergyman. 
His  birth  place  is  Menominee  Falls,  Wisconsin,  a  suburban 
town  of  Milwaukee,  Wisconsin.  The  date  of  his  birth  wras 
December  5,  1875.  In  early  childhood,  he  accompanied  his 
parents  to  Racine,  Wisconsin,  wrhere  they  resided  one  year. 
In  1877  with  his  parents  he  removed  to  Kipon,  Wisconsin, 
where  his  father,  the  Rev.  Carl  Dalies,  is  still  pastor  of  the 
Evangelical  Lutheran  church.  The  object  of  this  sketch  re- 
ceived his  early  education  in  the  schools  of  Ripon  and  at  the 
age  of  eighteen  came  to  Belen,  Valencia  County,  where  he 
entered  the  employ  of  his  uncle,  John  Becker,  who  there  con- 
ducted a  large  mercantile  establishment,  now  owned  by  the 
Becker  Mercantile  Company  and  with  which  Mr.  Dalies  is  at 
present  connected.  In  1900  he  was  elected  a  member  of  the 
thirty-fourth  legislative  assembly  without  opposition.  He 
served  a  second  term  in  the  thirty-fifth  assembly  and  was 
again  elected  on  November  8,  1904,  to  represent  Valencia 
county  in  the  lower  house  of  the  36th  assembly.  In  1903  he 
was  appointed  by  GovernorOtero  a  member  of  the  Territorial 
Irrigation  Commission,  and  of  the  Board  of  Managers  for 
New  Mexico  of  the  Louisiana  Purchase  Exposition,  of  which 
board,  he  was  elected  vice  president. 


W.  B.  WALTON,  Secretary. 


WILLIAM   B.  WALTON. 


William  B.  Walton  was  born  in  Altoona,  Pa.,  January  '23rd, 
1871.  His  father  Louis  Walton,  who  died  in  1890,  was  of 
staunch  old  Quaker  stock.  His  mother,  who  is  still  living  at 
Altoona,  is  a  daughter  of  William  Bell,  deceased,  one  of  the 
pioneers  of  the  central  Pennsylvania  section.  Mr.  Walton 
spent  his  early  life  in  Altoona,  completing  his  common  school 
education  in  that  city.  Later  he  attended  the  South  Jersey 
Institute  at  Bridgeton,  N.  J.,  graduating  therefrom  in  1891. 
He  then  resumed  newspaper  work,  in  which  he  had  previous- 
ly engaged,  for  a  brief  time  in  Altoona,  and  in  August,  1891, 
came  to  Deming,  New  Mexico,  where  he  entered  the  law  of- 
fice of  S.  M.  Ashenfelter,  Esq.,  and  under  whom  he  studied, 
being  admitted  to  practice  in  1892.  Shortly  after  coming  to 
the  territory,  Mr.  Walton  became  connected  with  the  Dem- 
ing  Headlight,  purchasing  the  plant  in  1893,  and  conducting 
the  same  until  1898,  at  which  time  he  disposed  of  the  prop- 
erty and  became  the  proprietor  of  the  Silver  City  Independ- 
ent, which  he  still  owns.  In  1895,  he  was  appointed  clerk  of 
the  third  judicial  district  court  by  Judge  Gideon  D.  Bantz, 
moving  to  Silver  City  from  Deming  at  that  time,  and  held 
that  office  until  the  change  of  administration  in  1898.  In  1900, 
Mr.  Walton  was  elected  on  the  Democratic  ticket  as  the  rep- 
resentative from  the  thirteenth  district,  and  served  as  a 
member  of  the  thirty-fourth  legislative  assembly.  In  190*2, 
he  was  elected  to  the  office  of  probate  clerk  of  Grant  county, 
and  was  re-elected  in  1904.  Mr.  Walton  was  named  by  Gov- 
ernor Otero  as  a  member  of  the  Board  of  Louisiana  Purchase 
Exposition  Managers,  created  by  the  Act  of  March  21,  1901, 
and  upon  the  abolition  of  said  board  by  the  succeeding  legis- 
lative assembly  and  the  creation  of  the  present  one,  was  re- 
appointed,  and  upon  organization,  was  elected  secretary. 
Mr.  Walton  has  always  been  an  active  Democrat. 

In  January  1*93,  Mr.  Walton  was  married  to  Miss  Leoline 
Ashenfelter. 


ARTHUR  SELIGMAN,  Treasurer. 


ARTHUR  SELIGMAN. 


Arthur  Seligman  was  born  in  Santa. Fe,  June  14th,  1*71. 
He  attended  the  public  schools  and  the  Santa  Fe  Academy 
for  several  years  and  thereafter  was  sent  to  Philadelphia 
where  he  was  a  pupil  at  the  public  schools  as  well  as  one  of 
the  high  schools.  He  was  a  student  for  two  years  at  Swarth- 
more  College  and  thereafter  took  a  complete  course  in  book- 
keeping and  banking  at  the  Pierce  College  of  Business  and 
Banking.  He  graduated  from  the  latter  college  in  1888  and 
returned  to  Santa  Fe,  where  he  entered  the  employ  of  the 
wholesale  and  retail  drygoods  firm  of  Seligman  Brothers 
with  which  business  he  has  remained  ever  since.  This  was 
established  by  his  uncle  and  father  in  the  year  1856  and  two 
years  ago  was  converted  into  a  stock  company  under  the 
name  of  the  Seligman  Brothers  Company  of  which  he  is  the 
secretary  and  treasurer.  Since  he  became  of  age,  Mr.  Selig- 
man has  taken  an  active  interest  in  politics.  He  is  a  democrat. 
For  ten  years  he  has  been  a  member  of  the  Democratic  Cen- 
tral Committee  of  Santa  Fe  county,  and  for  four  years  served 
as  its  chairman.  In  November  1896  and  1898,  he  was  the 
democratic  candidate  for  member  of  the  House  of  Represen- 
tatives of  the  Legislature  from  this  county,  and  was  defeated 
by  a  small  majority.  In  November  1900,  he  was  elected  a 
member  of  the  Board  of  County  Commissioners  from  the  first 
district  for  the  term  of  four  years,  and  in  November  1904  was 
re-elected  to  the  same  office  for  a  term  of  two  years,  and  on 
January  1st,  1905,  was  elected  chairman  of  the  board.  He 
was  appointed  by  Governor  Otero  and  served  as  commissioner 
from  New  Mexico  to  the  Pan  American  Exposition  at  Buffalo, 
New  York,  held  in  1901.  He  was  appointed  by  Governor 
Otero  a  member  of  the  New  Mexico  Board  of  Managers  of  the 
Louisiana  Purchase  Exposition  in  April,  1903.  He  was  elected 
treasurer  of  the  board,  a  position  which  he  still  fills.  For 
several  years  past  he  has  been  secretary  of  the  Fairview 
Cemetery  Association  of  the  City  of  Santa  Fe.  On  the  16th 
day  of  June,  1904,  he  was  appointed  by  Governor  Otero  a 
member  of  the  Irrigation  Commission  of  New  Mexico  and 
was,  immediately  after  appointment,  elected  secretary  and 
treasurer  of  the  same. 

For  the  past  eight  years  he  has  filled  the  position  of  Auditor 
of  the  Santa  Fe  Building  and  Loan  Association  and  is  still 
acting  in  that  capacity.  He  is  a  member  of  the  Board  of 
Trustees  of  the  University  of  New  Mexico  at  Santa  Fe,  also 
an  active  member  of  the  Board  of  Trade  of  the  city  of  Santa 
Fe,  and  of  the  Historical  Society  of  New  Mexico.  He  was 
married  July  4,  1H96  to  Mrs.  Franc  L.  Harris  at  Cleveland, 
Ohio. 


FAYETTE  A.  JONES,  Member. 


PROFESSOR  FAYETTE  A.  JONES. 


Professor  Fayette  A.  Jones  was  born  on  August  1,  1859,  on 
a  farm  twenty  miles  southeast  of  Kansas  City,  Missouri. 
His  father,  a  school  teacher  and.  civil  engineer,  came  from 
Puritan  stock  and  his  mother  was  a  Virginian,  closely  related 
to  the  Lee  family  of  Revolutionary  and  Civil  War  fame. 
Professor  Jones  received  his  early  schooling  at  a  com- 
mon country  school,  where  he  developed  an  aptitude  for 
mathematics  and  engineering.  He  remained  on  the  farm 
until  he  was  twenty-one  years  of  age  after  which  he 
secured  employment  in  a  flouring  mill  at  Blue  Springs, 
Missouri,  working  alternately  as  engineer,  book-keeper  and 
miller.  From  1880  to  1882  he  attended  the  Missouri  State 
University,  during  his  spare  time  being  employed  on  the 
college  farm  receiving  ten  cents  an  hour,  thus  being  enabled 
to  remain  at  school  after  his  father  had  become  financially 
embarrassed.  In  1882,  he  married  Miss  Agnes  A.  Cairns. 
The  year  following  his  marriage,  Professor  Jones  taught 
a  country  school  and  engaged  in  surveying.  From  1884 
to  1889  he  was  city  engineer  of  Independence,  Missouri, 
and  was  also  deputy  surveyor  of  Jackson  county  from  1884  to 
1888.  From  1889  to  1892  he  was  a  student  at  the  Missouri 
State  School  of  Mines,  a  portion  of  that  time  being  also 
assistant  professor  of  engineering  and  mathematics,  graduat- 
ing at  the  head  of  his  class,  taking  degrees  both  in  civil  and 
in  mining  engineering.  From  1892  to  1893  he  was  engaged  in 
mining  engineering  and  metallurgical  work  in  Arizona, 
having  a  narrow  escape  from  death  at  the  hands  of  the 
Apache  chief  known  as  "The  Kid."  During  the  fall  of  1893, 
Professor  Jones  made  a  preliminary  railroad  survey  from 
Maxwell  City,  Colfax  county,  New  Mexico,  through  the 
Cimarron  canyon,  over  the  Taos  pass,  through  the  town  of 
Taos  to  the  Rio  Grande.  In  1894  and  1895  he  was  engineer 
in  charge  of  an  expedition  across  the  Isthmus  of  Tehuantepec, 
and  from  1896  to  1898  was  the  government  assayer  in  charge 
of  foreign  ores  at  the  port  of  Kansas  City;  Missouri.  During 
this  time  he  acted  in  addition  as  chemist  of  the  State  Geolog- 
ical Survey  of  Missouri.  It  was  from  1898  to  1902  that 
Professor  Jones  was  president  of  the  New  Mexico  School  of 
Mines  atSocorro,  during  the  last  named  year  being  appointed 
field  assistant  of  the  United  States  Geological  Survey  and  at 
present  has  charge  of  the  mineral  resources  of  New  Mexico 
as  a  member  of  the  survey,  making  his  headquarters  at 
Albuquerque.  As  a  member  of  the  New  Mexico  Board  of 
Managers  for  the  Louisiana  Purchase  Exposition,  he  gathered 
the  mineral  exhibit  and  compiled  this  volume  covering  the 
mining  history  and  resources  of  the  Territory. 


««%,,. 


HERBERT  J.  HAGERMAN,  Member. 


HERBERT  J.   HAGERMAN. 


Herbert  J.  Hagerman  was  born  at  Milwaukee,  Wisconsin, 
on  December  15,  1871.  His  father,  J.  J.  Hagerman,  was  at 
that  time  president  of  the  Milwaukee  Iron  Company.  In  1881, 
Mr.  Hagerman  accompanied  his  father  to  Europe.  Upon 
their  return  they  took  up  their  residence  at  Colorado  Springs, 
Colorado.  In  1890,  the  subject  of  this  sketch  matriculated  at 
Cornell  University,  Ithaca,  New  York,  and  graduated  in  1904, 
subsequently  taking  a  course  in  law  at  the  University,  being 
admitted  to  the  bar  of  Colorado  in  1896.  He  practiced  in  the 
offices  of  Hall,  Preston  and  Babbitt  until  June  1898,  when  he 
went  to  Russia  as  second  secretary  of  the  United  States  Em- 
bassy at  St.  Petersburg,  being  appointed  by  the  late  Presi- 
dent McKinley.  During  his  first  year  in  the  diplomatic  ser- 
vice, Ethan  Allen  Hitchcock,  th3  present  secretary  of  the  In- 
terior, was  ambassador  to  Russia,  and  was  succeeded  by 
Charlemagne  Tower  of  Philadelphia.  Mr.  Hagerman's  col- 
league, Mr.  Peirce,  the  first  secretary  of  the  embassy,  is  now 
assistant  secretary  of  state.  Mr.  Hagerman  resigned  in  1901. 
Upon  his  departure  he  was  decorated  with  the  Order  of  St. 
Anne  by  the  Emperor  of  Russia.  Immediately  upon  his  re- 
turn, Mr.  Hagerman  took  up  his  residence  at  Roswell,  Chaves 
county,  to  cooperate  with  his  father  in  the  management  of  the 
South  Spring  Ranch  and  Cattle  Company,  the  Felix  Irriga- 
tion Company  and  other  interests.  He  was  an  alternate  from 
New  Mexico  to  the  Republican  National  Convention  at  Chicago 
in  1904.  He  was  appointed  by  Governor  Otero  in  March,  1903, 
a  member  of  the  New  Mexico  Board  of  Managers  of  the 
Louisiana  Purchase  Exposition. 


EUSEBIO  CHACON,  Member. 


EUSEBIO   CHACON. 


Eusebio  Chacon  was  born  at  Peiiasco,  Taos  County,  in  1870. 
During  his  childhood  his  parents  moved  to  Trinidad,  Colo- 
rado, to  which  point  he  accompanied  them.  There  he  attend- 
ed the  public  schools  and  later  rounded  out  his  education  at 
the  College  of  the  Jesuits  at  Las  Vegas.  In  1887  he  entered 
the  law  department  of  the  University  of  Notre  Dame, 
Indiana,  and  graduated  in  the  summer  of  1889.  After 
graduation,  Mr.  Chacon  accepted  a  position  at  Durango, 
Mexico,  but  was  compelled  to  return  to  the  United  States  by 
failing  health.  He  was  admitted  to  the  Bar  of  the  state  of 
Colorado  and  opened  a  law  office  at  Trinidad,  Colorado.  He 
held  the  position  of  translator  for  the  United  States  Court  of 
Private  Land  Claims  from  July,  1891 ,  until  it  went  out  of  exis- 
tence on  the  30th  of  June,  1904,  by  limitation  of  law.  In  the 
summer  of  1904  he  removed  to  Trinidad,  Colorado,  where  he 
is  nowr  a  practicing  attorney.  Mr.  Chacon  is  married  to  a 
(laughter  of  Senator  Casimiro  Barela  of  Colorado. 


UNIVERSITY 

OF 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY 
BERKELEY 

Return  to  desk  from  which  borrowed. 
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28May'57HJ 
REC'D  LI 

NOV  29  195! 


O-AGRICUITURI 

INTERUBRARY]LOAN 

2 1  J970  CIR-   OCT    8 


SEP     5 1976 


LD  21-95m-ll,'50(2877sl6)476 


69913 


